The BirdHive's Social Mission
The long-term vision is a Print-on-Demand manufacturing warehouse and artist platform designed from the ground up for disabled and neurodivergent workers and creators — living wages, flexible hours, sensory-friendly workspaces, and fair margins for ND, LGBTQIA+, and disabled artists. Not retrofitted. Built that way from the beginning.
We're actively pursuing grants and competitions — including this year's MN Cup — to get serious about that infrastructure. Every purchase, every convention, every person who shares the art is part of making that possible.
Not retrofitted. Built that way from the beginning. And we're not there yet — but we know exactly where we're going.
How Addy started in 2022
I have two degrees in art and animation — one from the University of Minnesota, one from The Art Institutes Twin Cities, an institution later found to be fraudulent. Many students had loans forgiven because of it. I learned early what it costs to trust the wrong institution. That lesson shapes everything I've built since.
I spent ten years after graduation working in animation and graphic design studios in the Twin Cities. I was good at the work and I loved creating things. But every environment I entered was built for someone whose brain worked differently than mine — open offices with uncovered fluorescent lights that felt like white knives straight to my brain through the eyes, social dynamics I could feel but not read, timelines with no room for how I actually function. I was hiding how hard everything was, and I didn't know why it was so hard.
At 35, I was diagnosed with Autism. My full picture includes ADHD, Autism, Dyslexia (major), chronic anxiety, chronic persistent depression, audio processing disorder, and BPD in recession. The diagnosis didn't need to fix me. It made clear my environment needed to change. About a year later, the burnout hit completely. I moved home — my parents and sister gave me somewhere safe to land. Without them I would not still be here.
While recovering, I picked up freelance illustration work for Beadle and Grimm's, working from home on tabletop RPG books — something I loved as a hobby. For the first time, work didn't feel like survival. That's when the question became impossible to ignore: if I need an environment built around how my brain actually works, what happens when I need to hire someone?
The BirdHive started as the answer. I began putting my art on shirts — Neurodivergent pride, LGBTQIA+ identity, the experience of being too much for rooms not built for you. I started selling at conventions. People found the designs and felt seen. By 2025, The BirdHive generated over $44K in revenue across Shopify and Midwest conventions, with strong margins and a growing community.
The long-term vision is a Print-on-Demand manufacturing warehouse and artist platform built from the ground up for disabled and neurodivergent workers and creators. Sensory-friendly clothing. Accessible workspaces designed for physical and mental disability — not retrofitted, built that way from the beginning. Living wages. Energy budgets. And a platform where ND, LGBTQIA+, and disabled artists can sell through BirdHive's infrastructure with fair margins and real ownership.
You don't have to have any disabilities to love sensory friendly clothing.
I'm building this slowly, on purpose. I've lived what happens when institutions rush people. Slow is how you build something that lasts and doesn't hurt the people inside it.