At Same Sky, we give a hand-up, not a hand out, and we do it globally. From Rwanda to the USA, we create jobs for women struggling to lift themselves out of extreme poverty, and we believe that real change happens with the dignity of work and the freedom of being self-sufficient. We tap into the Same Sky Artisans’ talent and potential and provide them with training and tools. They earn 15 to 20 times the average wage in Sub Saharan Africa, and 100% of net proceeds are reinvested to train and employ more artisans in need.
The true value of a same sky bracelet is empowerment. It is a constant reminder, a ribbon that ties you to these courageous women a world away—a beautiful piece of jewelry made more beautiful by the connection it symbolizes and how it makes you feel.
Same Sky was founded with a vision to provide a second chance to all women under the same sky. Not only do we offer employment and fair pay, we also give the training and education necessary for women to live empowered and self-sustaining lives.
“Talent is everywhere, opportunity isn’t”— and we aim to change that.
How did you earn your first sales? Which channels are now generating the most traffic and sales for you?
We had a very word-of-mouth based beginning, and all of our profits first began through trunk shows— both to get the word out and to make a profit. This mode was successful at first, but naturally once we began expanding digitally, we were able to also attract a younger audience, and our trunk shows are getting even bigger. Shopify also makes it easy for customers to become repeat supporters of Same Sky after they attend trunk shows.
Tell us about the back-end of your business. What tools and apps do you use to run your store? How do you handle shipping and fulfillment?
We use Quickbooks for invoicing and tracking of purchases, and we personally ship our product to our customers.
What are your top recommendations for new ecommerce entrepreneurs?
The best advice we can give is to be available and adaptable. Be available and interactive with customer needs across all social media platforms (this is also a great way to be interactive about your cause and to increase exposure). Be adaptable and willing to try new things, experiment, and see failures as places to learn.