CAN WE GET THIS OFFICE?
With some fresh paint, it has so much potential!
I just got back home after visiting a space this morning in a vibrant artistic neighborhood in Brooklyn. This is a screenshot of a video I took, but there's more on my Instagram stories if you want to see it all.
I'D LOVE TO GET IT!
On my commute home, I felt all excited about the idea of having our interns here, working in different spaces of the room. A design development suite, patternmaking worktop, a collaboration table for us to gather at and brainstorm and get things done, and the photography section by the window where everything comes to life.
ONE PROBLEM...
How we gonna pay the rent? It's more than I was hoping, but it's probably the best deal I can get for the market value in New York City. So far, a few months rent are already covered. I don't have confidence though that we're going to be able to juggle this and take care of everything in Nepal too with our current cash flow.
We'd have to increase our sales by at least 20% to make this rent on our own, and that is a lot of pressure.
WILL YOU GIVE ME A GRANT?
I realize this sounds totally crazy to ask you to help me pay rent on this. It's not a safe home for survivors or something more worthy of donations. However, I believe that somewhere along the way in these next 12 months, the talents of our team will flourish, and multiply our demand. This will have a ripple effect because with more demand, we'd hire more ladies in Nepal! I don't want to make promises, but it's something I am hoping will happen.
Why is the office space needed to do this? I've tried to have interns remotely, but it's so hard to train and get things done. Oh, the motivation of meeting in person, but not having to lug all our samples, sketches, and equipment on the subway every meeting. I need the space also to draw more interns to say yes to Elegantees. Interns want to be in person and learn from someone like me who has decades of experience. It's an easy yes for them with a beautiful space to gather at.
We did some soft fundraising for this the past few months, and we're thankful for it so far. What left is $27,000 to fulfill a 12 month lease. I'd like to ask if anyone would be willing to commit to helping each month for the 12 months? $10 per month, $50 per month, $100 per month, or any amount that works for you. If a handful of you can do this, we'll be at that $2250 per month before we know it!
If we get half of that met, I'm going to sign the lease and trust God for the rest. I need to get closer though to the halfway mark.
I look forward to hearing from you and building the next chapter for Elegantees together.
LET'S GO!,
Katie
