Elevate's 2018 Impact Highlights

Impact matters.

A phrase we regularly reflect on at the Elevate office.

We want to see life-changing opportunities given, families becoming self-sustained through small business, and communities transformed.

But in order to do that, we needed you.

And just as a stone cast into water makes many ripples, so does the effect of like-minded people like you coming together to support this mission. Whether through generous donations or by purchasing an Elevate product, together our impact has had a rippling effect.

How big is that ripple?

Pretty awesome, friends. Together, 2018 saw:

14 new businesses started
57 small business participants trained and ready for graduation
368 people impacted - These people are classified as either working for the new businesses created, receiving training, starting a business of their own, or working with us as trainers.

Read on for updates from our first business initiative, plus learn more about our most recent business developments.

Leather Business

2018 brought many new changes for our partners at the leather workshop! From hiring more artisans to moving to a larger facility, our partners continue to grow.

From four artisans and two managers at the end of 2017 to ten artisans and two managers at the end of 2018, their handcrafted goods continue to be enjoyed across the U.S. and around the world.

And not to be bias, but we can kinda see why..

Every time we receive a new shipment of their products, we are in awe of their skill level and ability to bring another Elevate creation to life with even more beauty than we could have imagined.

These guys are talented, people.

Which is why we weren't surprised when they revealed that they were able to move out of their 400 square foot working space and into a two level, 1,200 foot shop, on their own.

Talk about ownership. *Claps here*

Now having the space they need, they'll be able to grow at a steady pace while having room to host members in their community and build relationships.

We're so proud of all their accomplishments this year and can't want to see what's in store for 2019.

Beautician Shops

This year we have been able to empower even more women directly through our beautician and business trainings! Last year we saw 8 ladies graduate from our programs and start their own beautician shops.

We'll never forget sitting with these ladies in Nepal and listening to them explain why they wanted to have their own beautician shop. While all of them needed the opportunity for financial reasons, many communicated that they wanted to receive additional education, gain a new skill set, and have a platform within their community to connect with more women.

Two of the ladies who graduated business training in India last November decided to start a joint beautician business to build such relationships and to become a light to others around them.

They have already been seeing 3-4 customers a day in the first two months of business.

We are excited to understand how we can continue to support these women in 2019. We are looking at providing a possible refresher course and additional higher education training so that they are truly the experts in their area.

Chicken Hatchery

In 2018, Elevate's business training helped start it's first chicken hatchery! Biman lives in Northeast India and was struggling to provide for his family. That's when he met our trainer, Adi. Adi was hosting a business training and invited him to join, so he came to check it out. 12 months later, Biman graduated and received a loan to start his chicken hatchery!

Now, Biman has 200 chickens that he will sell either fully grown or as chicks to those in his area. He has been most excited about the opportunity to go door-to-door selling chickens so that he will have an easier avenue to build relationships.

We're excited to see all the ways this chicken hatchery will impact and empower his community.

Horse Cart Business

We added a new region of impact in 2018 - North Africa! This year, we were able to help a man named Hamdan who lives in a small village with his family. Hamdan has dreams of hosting community members in his house, but in his culture, it is dishonoring to not serve your guests.

With little financial resources available to him, he wanted a business to support his family and bless others. Hamdan received our business training and a loan from Elevate for a horse cart business. While this is still a very recent development, we look forward to finding more ways to serve Hamdan and his family.

Businesses Inspired By Elevate

We've had participants take our business training and afterward decide to seek resources and funding on their own to begin their initiatives as soon as possible! Below are the accounts we know of.

Chicken Farm: Anik had wanted to start a business for a long time, so when he met our trainers in East Nepal, they invited him to attend the training. When he attended he was so encouraged by the curriculum, that he did not wait to receive a loan after graduation. Instead, he secured a personal loan through a local bank and started his own chicken farm. He said he was tired of waiting for handouts and wanted to stand on his own to feet. He now has 400 chickens which supports him and his family.

Rickshaw Business: Another participant, Manish, attended the same business training as Anik. When Manish finished the training, he decided that he would bring one of his friends to this business training to join him in a joint business venture. He was able to purchase a rickshaw (a battery powered transportation vehicle) on his own. He is now running his taxi service with his partner. On his days off, Manish is able to attend to his family and community.

Our 2019 plans include:

Creating online training materials
Releasing 3 new translations of our training
Implementing our business training in 2 regions
Starting 75 businesses in 3 countries
Growing the reach of the Elevate brand for even more impact and opportunity.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead