Her lack of business skills was another obstacle she had to overcome.
“When I started applying for municipal contracts with the City of Chicago, they wanted me to pay for projects upfront and get reimbursed later. But I didn’t have the capital,” Traci explains.
So instead she applied for loans, but she was “too embarrassed” to say that she didn’t understand the financial jargon. “Finally I broke down and said I needed help.”
Traci was directed to various non-profit groups who assisted her with everything from organising her accounts to showing her how to bid for jobs. Pink Hats earned $125,000 (£95,000) in its first year, rising steadily to more than $1m in 2025.
Traci now employs all four of her daughters as her main team, aided by six part-time female staff. They specialise in transforming residential and commercial spaces with an emphasis on helping marginalised people.
Last year, Pink Hats renovated a 30-room home for women recovering from substance abuse in Chicago’s Austin neighbourhood. And it won a Builder of the Year award from the Southland Development Authority, a non-profit business organisation designed to help grow the economies of Chicago’s southern suburbs.
Pink Hats is currently starting its first new development, building 10 affordable, single-family homes for a Christian organisation in the west of the city.