Reimagining Nonprofits and Philanthropy Through Lessons From a Market in Haiti
Written by Wayne Elsey, Founder and CEO
Wayne Elsey is the founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Elsey Enterprises. Among his independent brands, he is also the founder and CEO of Funds2Orgs.
This year marks 20 years since I officially launched the nonprofit Soles4Souls. At the time, the world had come together after the natural disasters of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. It was in Haiti that a market helped me reimagine nonprofits and philanthropy in general.
The idea of collecting shoes and sneakers and shipping them to microentrepreneurs in Haiti and other developing nations to create economic opportunity was ambitious. But usually, the best ideas are ambitious and seemingly impossible. I’m proud of what Soles4Souls has become since I left it to focus on my health.
The reality is that the world is moving very quickly, and it needs fearless leaders who reinvent business and even consider reimagining nonprofits and philanthropy. Things can never remain as they were. When I led Soles4Souls, it proved to be the microenterprise bridge between North America and people worldwide who needed to sell footwear to earn a living. Anyone can reimagine!
Delmas, five months after an earthquake
Footwear News, in a 2010 article (Volume 66, No. 22), followed me through the streets of Haiti for a piece they published when Soles4Souls was in its early days, as was the idea of changing how nonprofits can operate to create economic opportunities. At the time, it was five months after the 2010 earthquake, which killed over 220,000 people and left millions homeless.
I was in Haiti for the first time with Footwear News, documenting our relief trip. During our travels, we made our way to Delmas and a street market that was filled with people, microentrepreneurs, and commercial activity. Selling merchandise, such as electronics, clothes, food, and shoes, is how many people earn a living to feed their families.
As a "shoe man" who's been in the business since my first job in a work-study program at 15, I took note of the shoes spread on blankets, hung from ceilings, and even in tubs. Microenterprise workers sold the preloved shoes for a fraction of their original price. It was a model that I saw could be turbocharged by creating a bridge to North America.
Reimagining nonprofits and philanthropy
I remember taking in the scene and realizing that people weren’t there waiting for charity. Within five months of a devastating 7.0 earthquake that leveled the city of Port-au-Prince, they were looking to help themselves. That’s the reality of microenterprise and people in general. People want to help themselves wherever and whenever possible.
In the Footwear News article, the reporter and I talked about microenterprise, and I said, “Our excess pairs in America can help people here earn a couple of bucks a day. It also will teach them a trade: how to fix and repair eyelets and bottoms, clean them and sell them. It keeps the shoes out of U.S. landfills, so there's an environmental element, too.”
I could see the microenterprise model of getting shoes from North America to developing countries, such as Haiti. I sketched the logo for Soles4Souls in Haiti, and I knew we could get inventory from the United States (U.S.) and into the hands of microentrepreneurs, ensuring they had an economic opportunity that would support families with dignity.
What reimagining social good requires
Since I left Soles4Souls, I’ve never stopped looking to give people the resources they need to help themselves through microenterprise. The models I use for my for-profit social enterprise brands, Funds2Orgs and Sneakers4Good, are based on creating opportunities for people to help themselves through commerce and microenterprise.
Anyone can reimagine social good. In a world of everyday disruption and exponential leaps in innovation, any founder and leader can reinterpret traditional social good and philanthropic models. Here’s how I think anyone who believes in profit and purpose can create opportunities for themselves and others.
Ask people who are already doing the work. When I was in Delmas, microentrepreneurs were already selling. I didn’t invent what they were doing, but I provided an opportunity for more inventory and capital for their growth.
Replace the idea of charity with a fair transaction. Most people want an opportunity, a chance. So, if you're looking to disrupt the traditional social good space, consider testing your proof of concept with starting stock or an economic opportunity.
Treat people as customers and microentrepreneurs. The shift toward helping people not only through charity is significant. Figure out, within your business model, how to allow people to help themselves through economic opportunity.
Allow profit and purpose to share the same model. I’ve been saying it for years, and I’ll say it again. Profit and purpose aren’t mutually exclusive. All my efforts since Soles4Souls prove that profit and purpose can and do coexist. You can do it too.
Twenty years later
When I left Soles4Souls on the advice of my doctors, who told me I had to focus on my health, I worried about its future. I shouldn’t have been concerned. The CEO and the team grew the organization and sustained the core microenterprise model I created. To see everything else they’ve done is a great credit to their talents.
I moved away from the nonprofit model when I created Funds2Orgs and then Sneakers4Good as for-profit social enterprises. Still, twenty years later, the market in Delmas reverberates. People don't need saving. They need the opportunity to save themselves. I’m grateful to everyone, including those at Soles4Souls, who believe in that truth.
Wayne Elsey, Founder and CEO
Wayne Elsey is the founder and CEO of Elsey Enterprises. Among his independent brands, he is also the founder and CEO of Funds2Orgs. This social enterprise helps nonprofits, schools, churches, civic groups, individuals, and others raise funds while helping to support micro-enterprise (small business) opportunities in developing nations and the environment.
