Today we raise our fists high and put our hands together in celebration of our Feature Girl Warrior, successful entrepreneur and performance marketing specialist Debbie Chabot, founder and lead strategist at Chabot Media, a full-stack senior-led performance media for brands that care about results. With 30+ years’ experience and $110+ Million in media invested, Debbie takes media buying to a whole other level. She received her Communications and Advertising Accredited Professional Designation through the Institute of Canadian Advertisers and is the winner of Cassie (Communication and Advertising Success Stories) awards and other Media Innovation awards. Debbie was classically trained before the digital era giving her a deep understanding of the role of all media opportunities, a skillset her clients welcome. Entrepreneurially spirited by nature, Debbie has owned, operated and sold a few businesses over the years including an old-fashioned candy and ice cream shop, Patsi Cola Candy Company. Community and family-minded with a heart for volunteerism, you’ll find Debbie anywhere from sitting in a board meeting or handing out food to families that are struggling with food insecurity. And to that we say YES!
How would you define a Girl Warrior?
Ooh, I feel like every woman I’ve ever met is a warrior. Just by definition, being a woman puts us in a position where we have to be rooted and stand tall. Even if we appear to have ease in our lives to those outside looking in, I think all women are battling their own demons. We are mothers. We are protectors. And we are hard to kill.
Your father was an underground miner killed in the Sullivan mine in Kimberley. How did his death change you?
My father was my hero. He was kind and funny and warm and loving. He was my protector and my confidante. When he passed, it left a hole that was never filled. The trauma from such a quick, premature, and tragic death never leaves a person. I think this was one of the first times that I really saw how frail people are. Those around me fell apart. I fell apart. My sense of safety and care left me the day that he died, and I have never really regained that. I still hold hope that one day I will regain it.
Where’s your favorite place to live in British Columbia and why?
This is a real toss-up. But my gut says, Golden. I had so many incredible experiences there with the saltiest, most grounded and loveliest people on earth. I really left my heart in Golden when we moved. Living outside of town on a small acreage was so healing for me after so many years of the fast city pace. I started, operated and successfully sold my first business there. I engaged meaningfully in community life through volunteerism. I made great friends and started a family there. I have always felt most comfortable in small communities and in the mountains and Golden gave me both.
What life lesson did you learn when you didn’t get accepted to university to be a kindergarten teacher? How did that affect the trajectory of your life?
Quite simply, that there are outcomes to your behaviours. I only didn’t get accepted to university because I chose to party hard in high school instead of study. That was an incredible lesson and one that I’ve carried with me. Understanding how the choices that I make today affect my life in the future both gives hope and provides a perspective that keeps me moving.
Because of that, I had to attend a smaller community college and figure things out… while I kept partying. I didn’t learn very fast. But it ultimately led me to my current profession in advertising, so the outcome of that hard lesson was quite positive. Now that I’m a mother, I have the utmost respect for teachers and am quite confident that becoming a teacher was not destined for me.
How did you get into Media Buying?
I was referred by my Advertising and Media college professor. The Media Director at Copeland Communications had reached out to her asking if she had any students that stood out that might be a good hire and she recommended me. That was also a pretty massive lesson in the value of relationships for me. I had no idea that I came across in any notable way, let alone in a positive enough way to be recommended for a professional position.
What do you love about the advertising and marketing industry?
The people. As cliche as that is, the relationships in this industry are unlike any other. I say it’s “shared trauma,” but I really shouldn’t because that puts a negative spin on it. We do hard work. We do important work. And we have to do it together. Each person on an ads team, on the supplier side, and on the client side, brings knowledge and skills to the table that turn an idea into something pretty cool. It’s energetic, fast-paced, and interesting. I sit firmly in the middle between my clients and my media partners which means maintaining good relationships is absolutely imperative. I have clients and reps that I’ve worked with on and off for 30 years now. We’ve all grown up together.
How did Patsi Cola Candy Company come to be? What/who inspired the name?
When I decided to move to Golden, I knew that I couldn’t practice my profession at the level that I wanted to there, only because of the market size. This meant I needed to find something fun to do with my time. We had a friend from Nelson, Pat Davis, who was super entrepreneurial. He mentioned offhand one day that he always dreamed of having a candy store and it just felt so right. We named Patsi Cola Candy Company after Pat Davis who had a running string of nicknames, including Patsy Cline… which led us to Patsi Cola. It was a fun name. I even used the Pepsi logo as the base for mine; I figured that they wouldn’t mind since I was only a small shop in a small town in BC.
You’ve referred to your ex-partner as a “bad boy.” Many of us can relate to the attraction.Why do you think so many smart, talented, successful women fall for bad guys? What’s that all about?
My child’s father, who I didn’t marry thank goodness, was definitely a bad boy. In all ways possible, unfortunately leading to his own demise. He recently passed away in a homeless encampment. That’s a pretty far cry from the 6-figure income earner he was when we were together. Men like that bring excitement but I certainly don’t know why smart, talented, and successful women would ever fall for them. That misstep took a lot from me and created significant suffering. I do not recommend.
How did you rebuild your life after the terrifying and heartbreaking end to your toxic relationship?
I rooted myself in my convictions and fought. Every. Single. Day. I had to rebuild everything. My relationships, finances, sense of self, sense of safety and those of my child. I had to rebuild a home and a life for myself and my child while he continued to attack us, even threatening to kill us multiple times. I carried so much guilt and shame for ever letting someone that awful into my life, let alone harm my precious child. I don’t suspect that will ever go away. But, for anyone going through something like this… I want them to know that there is always a way out. It might be awful for a while, but it will calm down and your life will go on.
What effect did this have on your young son Cooper?
Cooper grew up without a father. I did what I could to protect him from the damage caused, but Cooper is bright and very connected to me, so he felt my fear and my pain, it couldn’t be avoided. I did all the right things – read the books, saw the counsellors, got the help for both of us, but it takes time.
Cooper has grown to be the most incredibly sensitive, kind, loving, and thoughtful person. He has pushed hard against becoming like that. His resilience is so strong, stronger than it should ever have to be at his young age.
What are ACEs and how has trauma affected Cooper’s mental health? What difficult professional decision did you make so you could care for your son?
ACEs are Adverse Childhood Experiences. These are traumatic events that occur before age 18 that can have long-term effects on health, well-being, and life outcomes. There are 10 categories and Cooper could check off 9 out of the 10 despite how much I tried to protect him and ensure he had supportive care in place. His overall health, both mental and physical, has been significantly affected, and I continue to support his care now and will in the future.
At one point, in his mid-teens things became so severe that I had to leave my work to provide full-time care. I left a career that was going very well, I held a senior position and was well compensated. We were finally on the right track financially, which afforded me the ability to make the difficult decision. But the outcome couldn’t be better. I now own my own micro agency and am doing better than I ever did before.
When Covid hit and everyone was making sourdough, what did you do?
I dove head-first into Mr. Money Mustache and the Financial Independence, Early Retirement community. This is a financial philosophy that leans into compounding… so eliminate debt and interest payments and instead have your money working and growing for you. At one point, I had a 53% savings rate. I saved more than I spent, which is how I amassed enough to take the professional break that I needed to take care of my family. And also, what gave me the runway needed to start the business. Will I actually retire early? Who knows? But I definitely understand what it takes to get there and have proven to myself that I can do it.
What would you say to your younger Girl Warrior?
Girl, slow down and look around. I have always moved at a pace. I make quick decisions which can be amazing but can also have terrible outcomes. That said, those terrible outcomes usually came with lessons I clearly needed to learn to become who I am today. Perfectly imperfect and a wonderful work in progress.
Who is/are your Girl Warrior hero(s) and why?
Ma Tante Georgette comes immediately to mind. She is so warm and wonderful. An outstanding homemaker, wife, and mother, yet she also had a career and volunteered. We don’t make women like our Aunties anymore. We should swing back to that level of heartiness they once possessed.
My best friend, Sam would also qualify and then some. She’s a modern-day Auntie. She’s a veritable Swiss knife and a great friend. She is a caregiver to the sick, fully sandwiched between generations, and she’s raising another Girl Warrior while somehow handling it all.
Blue Sky it. No boundaries here, just limitless opportunities. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Married to a man that I love. Kid is sorted out and living independently. Still running my business. Still volunteering. Still being an active member of my community. Spending time with friends. Healthy and happy.
What books are on your nightstand?
The Bible and Traction.
Describe yourself in five words.
Spicy. Resilient. Loving. Strategic. Capable.
If a film were written about your life, what would it be called and who would play you?
The Second Act. Tagline: The hardest journey wasn’t escaping the past. It was believing she deserved a future. Julianne Moore. She plays emotionally complex women extremely well.
To learn more about Debbie and her work, head over to her website at: https://chabotmedia.com/
Connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-chabot-0363155
Follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/celebrate.with.debbie/
And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/debbie.chabot
