Again, the best way of answering this is with a picture.
The picture on the right shows our factory in Sea Winds informal settlement. We in fact have a total of 6 machines, but at the moment only have physical space for 2 of them. We need premises to work from, and to provide a secure and safe place to keep our equipment.
We need working capital in order to expand our operations.
We need introductions to people with whom we can network to provide us with new marketing and business opportunities. We will need ongoing assistance and guidance in making this co-operative successful.
We believe very strongly indeed that if we are successful, we can make a huge difference not only to peoples’ lives, but also to the textile industry itself. At the moment, the textile industry is highly gendered, with women being seen and treated as low wage labour, but not being able to progress beyond supervisory level. In addition, we believe that our approach will move beyond the current emphasis on low wage labour.