EDITORIAL SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Market-related business practices can drive sustainable development in SA
Mainstream social development initiatives often fail to reach the most vulnerable parts of society. When presented with opportunities, talented people who are surviving despite enormous challenges often fail to achieve their potential because they lack financial knowledge and business acumen, not to mention access to market and emotional support.
B
eatrice Delpierre is the owner and operations director
The entrepreneur behind the company
of essay GIFTS and Kids Positive. essay GIFTS is
Never intending to work in the gifting sector, Delpierre qualified
a Proudly South African gifting company with a
as pharmacist in 1995 and worked as an area manager for a
unique business model in which the company forms
large pharmaceutical company in the UK. She needed a new
the link between corporate clients and artists, artisans and
challenge and wanted to make a difference in people’s lives
craftspeople in the informal sector. This enables the former
when the family moved back to South Africa in the mid-2000s.
to support local talent while assuring a premium product is
Thus essay GIFTS was born, its name a play on the essay, or
delivered in full, on time.
story, every artist brings to their project. Delpierre comes from a family of social entrepreneurs.
Over the years the company has developed a carefully curated
Her great-aunt founded the Maria Kloppers/Abraham Kriel
gift portfolio from a range of talented craftspeople who have
orphanage in Johannesburg more than 100 years ago, which is
proven themselves to be trustworthy, creative and attentive to
still taking care of children today.
detail. essay GIFTS finds the clients, brokers the deals, develops the gift idea and manages the production process from
“Maria Kloppers built her enterprise on faith, something I can relate to,” Delpierre comments.
conception to delivery. “essay GIFTS was founded in the belief that market-related
In 2015, on learning that Kidzpositive Family Fund, an NGO she
South Africa. It can create the opportunity for people to make
worked with, was about to close down because of the loss of
a living without having to migrate to urban centres and leave
external financial support, Delpierre decided to take this project
their families and communities behind,” says Delpierre, whose
under her wing. The Kidzpositive Positive Beadwork Project was
portfolio of artists is located all over the country.
originally designed as a means for mothers and caregivers of
“We want to empower people, and especially women, to become self-sufficient.”
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Kidzpositive Positive Beadwork Project
business practices can drive sustainable development in
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HIV positive children treated at Groote Schuur Hospital to earn a dependable income.