To help women get out of human trafficking and prostitution, Robin Seyfert, founder of Friends of Basha, describes her journey using lean methods when she had no prior manufacturing or business experience.
Basha Boutique began through partnerships with Children’s Uplift Programme (CUP) and Mennonite Central Committee (MCC).
MCC was providing similar services for women wanting to escape street and hotel based prostitution. Many women had struggled to find a livelihood because of the stigma attached to their past and the trauma they continued to deal with.
Once completing a time of training and rehabilitation through CUP or MCC, Basha Boutique would now offer them alternative paid work in a safe, supportive environment and the opportunity to rebuild their lives.
After Training Within Industry (TWI) methods were provided to women in the program, they were able to make a quality, sellable notebook cover in 1-2 months, which normally took about 6 months.
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