Tell us a bit about yourself, your background, and your experience. Specify any relevant details in your upbringing that contributed to developing your social business idea later on.
Firstly, I’m a dreamer! Everything I’ve achieved so far I just did because I gave myself a chance to dream. Secondly, I’m passionate about Fashion! Fashion Design has always been a dream to me and now I’m creating my own way to transform the industry into a safe space for the ones who produce and the ones who consume. I also consider myself an environmental activist and nowadays I use Fashion as a tool to make people more conscious about the planet. That’s the reason I created Three Graces: to give job training to vulnerable women in entrepreneurship and textile crafts(wo)manship and to assist fashion brands in adopting sustainable processes.
Please describe your company story. What led you to start your social business? How did you come up with the idea to start your social business?
Since I started at the Fashion Design graduation I started working at an NGO that assists vulnerable women and it was my first contact with them. I started attending Sustainable Fashion events since then and became a Fashion Revolution Student Ambassador volunteer at my university.
3 months before the pandemic hit I opened up a second-hand clothing store, but, obviously, I had to close it in March 2020. I got mentally unstable for months, but in August a group of people I know created an acceleration program to enable social impact projects with more tools. I applied my idea of giving job training on textile crafts(wo)manship and entrepreneurship to women in the slum to the program. I was one of three finalists and was mentored for 6 months in Business model and Accounting.
In 2021, I applied to Shell Youth Initiative and I was accelerated to make my products better now Three Graces is a certified Sustainable Business given by them. I took 2022 to think about Three Graces and do other things. I almost gave up on this dream, but I know deeply it’s worth living.
This year, I applied to Yunus & Youth because it’s a great opportunity to look closer at social businesses and connect to people around the world with similar ideas of changing realities with our own hands. It has been such an experience because now I’m learning how to make my social business to be more social than just a business.
What is the main challenge you want to solve?
I still have to prototype the job training program for vulnerable women. Finding a space to give the classes has been an obstacle because normally the areas they live in are dominated by criminal groups and it makes it harder to get in because of the violence between them and the police.
How did you first hear about the social business concept? When did you realize you were leading a social business?
When I started the Shell Youth Initiative. I did not know this concept existed and only then I realized my business does not fit in a traditional type, but a new one.
What do you enjoy most about being an entrepreneur? And the least?
The part I enjoy the most about being an entrepreneur is that I’m not pursuing anyone else’s dreams anymore, now I’m pursuing my own dreams and transforming them into achievable goals.
The least is that sometimes it’s hard to dream alone.
What is the most important lesson you learned in your journey as a social entrepreneur so far?
Things happen when they have to. Sometimes it’s just not the right time and we think we can control everything when we actually can’t.
How did you hear about the Y&Y Fellowship Program?
Suggestion on Instagram!
What motivated you to apply?
I really love exchanging ideas and meeting new people from all over the world. I feel better when I meet another entrepreneur who faces the same issues as I do and we can talk about it to find solutions together.
How has your journey as a Y&Y Fellow been so far?
I found a safe space to talk about how lonely the entrepreneurship journey can be. It’s not the same as talking to a family member or friend about a challenge we’re facing in our businesses.
Also, I discovered new concepts and was able to apply them to see different aspects.
Why is it important to have the support of a mentor?
They can be more specific in some areas where we are not that good. It helps us to think about another solution, mainly, when we don’t have a partner which is my case.
What advice would you give to a young person who is starting a social business?
Dream and keep going. Never forget where you came from, but you need to know where you want to go.
What advice would you give to someone considering applying to the Y&Y Fellowship Program?
If you really want to change the world – even if it’s a little bit and get in contact with like-minded people, Y&Y is the right Fellowship Program. Now, I consider the Y&Y Team and my Fellows as a family that helped me to build a better world for others and myself.
