Given EVEnet is a social enterprise, we thought you may be interested to know about this new type of company, which is a hybrid between a commercial enterprise and a charity. There are more than 62,000 social enterprises in the UK, contributing over £24bn to the economy. So what’s all the fuss about?
Social enterprises such as EVEnet include community enterprises, trading arms of charities, employee-owned businesses, co-operatives, development trusts, housing associations, social firms, and leisure trusts.
Some well-known social enterprises include John Lewis, Cafédirect, The Eden Project, Divine Chocolate and The Big Issue.
They differ from conventional businesses, who distribute their profit among shareholders, in that social enterprises distribute their surplus to their social aims.
Three common characteristics of social enterprises are:
Ida Horner runs Ethnic Supplies, which supports women in the East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Madagascar by sourcing handmade handicrafts and fashion accessories from suppliers that support women to be financially independent or directly established women’s groups in rural locations.
What was your reason for setting up a Social Enterprise?
Having visited the South West part of my native Uganda in December 2006, the Poverty that I witnessed prompted me to take action so I set up Ethnic Supplies Ltd. – a social enterprise specialising in African handicrafts and textiles, art and crafts from East Africa. I also wanted to use my skills of working with the poor in London for the poor of Africa. But it would not be about charity, it would be something that would enable the women to earn money from their work and this money would go directly to them.
What advice would you give to somebody thinking of setting up a social enterprise?
Be very clear as to why you are doing it – the reasons for setting
up a social enterprise will keep you going when the going gets tough. Involve
others, as you cannot do it on your own and seek advice from those that are
doing it already, as well as experts in the field.
Jacky Charman set up Xcellence 4u several years ago, running courses for ‘hard to reach people’, at councils, community centres, schools and government support agencies, to help them gain confidence.
What was your reason for setting up a Social Enterprise?
Xcellence 4u is about giving people confidence in disadvantaged areas. I knew there were fabulous courses going on, but the people who really needed them didn’t have the confidence to attend them. My driving force was seeing other people succeed and to do that I had to make it as barrier free as possible.
What advice would you give to somebody thinking of setting up a social enterprise?
You’ve truly got to believe in what you are doing, as there are going to be times that you will be doing it for free. Running a social enterprise does have lots of similarities with running a business, but money is not the driver. With a Social Enterprise, you can gain reputation and experience by doing it for free. Just make sure you have a strong social reason for setting up a Social Enterprise, so that when times are hard, you know in your heart why you are doing it.
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