Seasons
To everything in life there is a season. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to sow and a time to reap. For The Women’s Bakery, this year has already held many seasons.
In January, we sowed the seeds of recommitment to our social enterprise model and fully leaned into The Women’s Bakery 2.0. In February, we rolled up our sleeves and began kneading out more efficient bakery workflows and operations. These skills were honed in large thanks to Rob VanErven, baker extraordinaire, on loan from corporate partner Rademaker, BV.
In March, we celebrated the strength of women with International Women’s Day. April brought a season of remembrance for the 25th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide. May ushered in a season of honoring the mothers in our lives, especially the bread winners at The Women’s Bakery. And June brought a season of loss and sadness.
At the beginning of June, we learned from The Women’s Bakery’s first employee and Co-Founder, Julie Greene, that her time with the company was drawing to a close. The next week, our team was forced to grieve another loss - a strong bakery woman, Kayitesi, who died unexpectedly.
Both of these women embody the spirit, values, and principles of The Women’s Bakery.
To Kayitesi, we say rest in peace strong woman.
To Julie, we say thank you. Words are not enough to describe Julie’s incredible contributions to and impact on The Women’s Bakery. She has been an integral part of birthing, fostering, and building The Women’s Bakery to the place it is today. She gave her blood, sweat, and tears to ensure that the bakery women had every opportunity for gainful employment and social empowerment in their lives, and she committed herself to supplying communities with access to nutritious, affordable breads. The world is a better place because of this work. Julie, you are an incredible person. Thank you for leading us, working alongside us, and making us better. You will forever be a part of The Women’s Bakery and we will be forever grateful to and for you.
And so like The Byrds said, “To every season, [we] turn, turn, turn.”
The Multiplier Effect
By Tessa Soni
In 1909, Women’s Day was started as part of the labor movement in the United States. By the next year, 100 women from 17 countries met in Copenhagen, Denmark to advocate for women’s rights and the right to vote. On March 8, 1917, Russian women protested for “Bread and Peace”. 4 days later in countries around the world women were granted the right to vote. Today, this special day is celebrated to boast women’s achievements, advancements and value regardless of their culture, their social or economic background, their religious upbringing or country of origin.
When I was in high school, I remember that none of the female staff were seen in the kitchen on International Women’s Day. Meals were prepared only by male staff. What I remember the most from those days - apart from the fact that auntie Judith’s sauce was impossible to replicate - was the change in attitude of the women at my school. I was amazed by how such little encouragement and validation brought such noticeable positive impact in the female staff.
Those high school days brought me to the belief that investing in women has a multiplier effect. In the 1920’s Ghanaian scholar, James Emman Aggrey, said, “If you educate a man you simply educate an individual, but if you educate a woman, you educate a whole nation.”
I personally believe that The Women’s Bakery is living proof of this concept. From a very brave woman baking bread with neighbor ladies in Bushoga, Rwanda to today’s company which employs 42 women, TWB practices the multiplier effect every day. Every woman who works for TWB is a rock star. She is to be celebrated today on International Women’s Day and every day.
As one of the newest additions to the team, I have to admit I had my own set of questions and uncertainties about how TWB was living the multiplier effect when I first joined. Why bread? Can you really make a business profitable based on such a perishable and highly produced commodity as bread? How do you decide where to draw the line between the social and operational needs of such a business?
I believe one of the biggest truths in this world is that you can accomplish almost anything if you are dedicated enough. I think that is the common character trait in everyone working at TWB and what makes TWB successful. We are dedicated to women, and bread is our tool to impact a nation.
At TWB, the expression “wearing many hats” has brought on a whole new meaning for me. And I find power in that. I find power in a woman with a public health background with better financial skills than many accountants I’ve met. I find power in a colleague who is a highly experienced professional with an MBA and an impressive career path. And I find power in a woman who lives in the far ends of Kagina with no professional qualifications prior to working for TWB. The dedication to make a social and economic impact in the community is equally real for each of them.
As we celebrate International Women’s Day this year, I can’t help but feel privileged to work alongside women who are truly, in every sense of the meaning, worth fighting for. Their achievements, no matter their culture, social or economic background, their religious upbringing or country of origin, are to be celebrated! Happy International Women’s Day!
The Women's Bakery 2.0
For me, our fifth year marks the beginning of a new chapter for us: The Women’s Bakery 2.0.
2019 will be our fifth official year. I can hardly believe it as I write this. Five years!
For me, our fifth year marks the beginning of a new chapter for us: The Women’s Bakery 2.0. When I said this to Hilary, our Deputy Director of Operations (DDO) last week, she laughed and said, “I think it’s more like TWB 7.0.” And really, in many ways she is correct. Our journey up to this point has been a series of iterations – design, implement, tweak, repeat. These iterations, while tiring and often discouraging, have gotten us closer to where we are today, and closer to a tried and true model that works.
We started in 2014 with a dream – to build women-powered bakeries in East Africa. In many ways our dream has become a reality, and 2019 will serve to be the year of shoring up the stability of this dream.
To start, we have clearer direction in our mission – to build a women-centric social enterprise that gainfully employs women and provides access to quality breads in East Africa – which will aide better role designations, expectations and task execution. We have more tangible (and, frankly, attainable) goals – to enhance company culture, to socially and economically empower women, and to achieve profitability at our existing bakeries – which will aide in streamlining our operations and celebrating our successes.
We are recommitting ourselves to social enterprise, meaning we continue to place equal weight on social impact and financial return. Social enterprise is a balancing act and we are constantly re-calibrating. Often the for-profit and non-profit threads pull against each other, creating an ever-shifting landscape to equilibrate. But we’re inching closer and closer, harmonizing both sectors in small but powerful ways. That is why social enterprise is so important today – in a world that is seemingly increasingly polarized between profit and philanthropy, we are proving that business can and should be used as a tool for social good.
We have such a strong team – women at our bakeries, staff in our offices, interns, donors, and volunteers – and I am excited to watch them soar this year. I'm very proud to be part of something so much greater than myself. To be a part of a team that believes in the power of women and is committed to women’s autonomy.
So, here’s to 2019, may this be a year of hope and strength, learning and success, commitment and celebration. We couldn’t have made it this far without you. Thank you for being part of our team and helping us build our dream of women-powered bakeries throughout East Africa – bread power!
Enriching Our World
I believe that as global citizens we must get to know and understand each other.
By Ann Baruch
My visit to Rwanda in 2018 is one of my most memorable life experiences.
Prior to the trip I knew Markey Culver well and admired her tremendously. I was eager to see The Women’s Bakery “in action” and enjoy other aspects of the country. I was drawn by the opportunity to better understand Rwanda's history and to meet people who are committed to building a strong future for their country. In addition, the chance to visit the gorillas was irresistible and the delight of a visit to a game preserve was compelling. I wanted to tour the city of Kigali and enjoy its museums and restaurants. "The land of 1000 hills” was calling to me, and I was not disappointed in any way!
I support TWB for many reasons.
I believe that people deserve a chance to be the very best that they can be.
I believe that women deserve an opportunity to develop the skills that enable them to support themselves and their children.
I believe that women have large amounts of untapped resources to contribute to the world.
I believe that those of us who are blessed with adequate resources have an obligation to share our talents and financial resources with others.
I believe that as global citizens we must get to know and understand each other.
I am inspired by the way in which the work of TWB contributes to all of these issues. I am inspired by the many ways in which Markey, and others, give so selflessly. I encourage others to give to TWB because I know that the contribution will make a basic and permanent difference in the lives of women. The empowerment of these women will inspire and provide skills and education to others. Our world is enriched by such efforts.
I hope that TWB will thrive and grow bigger and stronger. I hope that it will achieve financial security and serve as a model for other organizations. I hope that the courageous and dedicated founders will enjoy the delight of knowing what a tremendous contribution they have made to the lives of others and to the world. I salute them and say a heartfelt “thank you”.
Culture - What Does That Mean at TWB?
Culture, what is it? What does it mean? And how does an organization working in multiple countries, like The Women’s Bakery, build a culture that bridges the gap between very different backgrounds, socio-economics statuses, religions, ethnicities, etc.?
In graduate school I often heard the questions: “What is culture? What does it mean? How do you define it? Does America have it?” Interviewing and onboarding with The Women’s Bakery it is a word I have been hearing often again. So what is it? What does it mean? And how does an organization working in multiple countries, like The Women’s Bakery, build a culture that bridges the gap between very different backgrounds, socio-economics statuses, religions, ethnicities, etc.?
Merriam Webster gives it multiple definitions. For the purpose of this article, I am working from the premise that culture is “the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization”. When you put it this way, to me it seems The Women’s Bakery has this down pat.
But, what does that mean? What are those shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices? In my first couple of weeks with The Women’s Bakery, I have seen those beliefs as striving for gender equality, women’s empowerment, personal and professional growth opportunities for all employees, accountability to each other and to the greater good, and a determination to meet each day with grit and grace.
How does that translate across countries, time zones, and languages? Good question! So far, I am experiencing that as lots of Facetime, lots of question asking and asking people to repeat things, and plenty of slowing down to ensure that each woman’s voice is heard. It is my humble opinion, that culture is where the rubber meets the road. It is the place where mission and meaning meet. To say TWB builds bakeries that sustainably employ women and enhance community nutrition is one thing. To build bakeries that sustainably employ women and enhance community nutrition with integrity and women’s involvement is an entirely different thing. This last thing is truly what culture is about.
Small Incremental Change – The Path to Sustainable Change
We believe that small, incremental change is a strong indicator of sustainable change. Our team is proud of all the hard work we have contributed to making a difference in the lives of the women we work with.
Most non-profits want to show their impact with numbers. Big numbers. And, in a short period of time.
Stakeholders want people trained in the 1,000s or 10s of thousands. Stakeholders want number of lives touched in the millions. However, all too often, those numbers do not account for the depth of impact and confuse a small touch with programming to mean big change for that individual, their families, or their communities.
At TWB we have questioned the traditional numbers and goals for these numbers that non-profits use.
Some of the questions we asked ourselves were:
- Will the women who go through TWB training ACTUALLY be able to get a job with the skills they learned?
- Will that job allow them to work EVERY DAY, indefinitely, and slowing increase their salary?
- Will they ACTUALLY be making more money than when they started training?
- Will they ACTUALLY have access to healthcare?
This is what we have been trying to prove over two years later. And, the answers are yes.
- 100% of women who go through our training program are offered jobs after training in TWB owned or managed bakeries.
- Employment in TWB owned or managed bakeries is every day, six days a week, all months of the year (excluding public holidays).
- On average, women working in TWB owned or managed bakeries make 2x their pre-bakery salaries from their first day of employment.
- 100% of women at TWB owned or managed bakeries have access to health insurance and monthly mental health counseling as benefits to their employment.
However, this is not without a tremendous amount of both financial and human capital invested. It is through the hard work of an entire team of 12 Rwanda-based employees and interns that execute and operate our programs.
We have realized the power of our impact on just one woman.
We believe that small, incremental change is a strong indicator of sustainable change. Our team is proud of all the hard work we have contributed to making a difference in the lives of the women we work with.
