Today we’d like to introduce you to Elisha Chan.
Hi Elisha, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I was eight years old when my family decided to send me to the other side of the world to receive a better education. I left my culture, my language, and everything I’d ever known in Hong Kong, and traveled to a foreign land called America. Through many tears and hard work, I adapted to the new ways of life, learned to speak English, and studied hard in school. Eventually, I made it to the University of California, Los Angeles, where I was on my way to make my Chinese family proud: I would graduate from a famous university, get a good job at a famous company, and start to climb the corporate ladder. But I experienced something that forever changed the trajectory of my life. I started volunteering on mission trips during school breaks to a small village called Fond Doux in Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. I saw people living in abject poverty living only 1.5 hours’ flight away from the rich nation of America. The realities of life in Haiti have only gotten worse over the years. People are making less than $1 a day; children are not going to school; and families are starving because they can’t afford the basic necessities. It broke my heart then as much as it breaks it now. But it made me start to question what the solution could be. This led me to find my calling and lifelong mission to help alleviate poverty through long-term and sustainable solutions.
Six months after I graduated from UCLA, I started my social enterprise, Impactful Market, with the mission to end poverty through job creation. I started working with artisans and farmers across Haiti, selling their handmade products to support fair trade employment, allowing them to feed their families and send their children to school. I also started a scholarship program in our village, which helped send at-risk youth of all education levels to school. Through this program, we’ve seen first-generation university graduates come out of Fond Doux. We even held the very first graduation in our village in 2016!
In 2022, I realized it was time to take our impact to the next level. I established a nonprofit called Impactful Missions to help end global poverty. In 2023, we established a school in our village called Impact International Institute of Haiti, where students enjoy two meals a day, a quality education, and a safe space to grow in a time of great unrest in the country. In spite of the darkness all around us, we have created a happy little corner on this earth, where children get to run freely and grow to become the future leaders of this world.
We have also established our own Impactful Artisan Workshop in Fond Doux, empowering vulnerable women with fair trade employment. Despite the devastation in Haiti, we get to provide hope through beautiful handmade products. Whether it’s through job creation or education, I am grateful to be on this journey, impacting one life at a time.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
We’ve seen it all in Haiti: earthquakes, hurricanes, political turmoil, gang violence. Most, if not all, of the people I’ve met along the way have warned me that Haiti is one of the hardest places to work. The current situation is so dire that most humanitarian organizations have pulled out. Gangs are taking over the capital, cutting food sources and transportation routes across the country. A 50lb bag of rice is now over $70 dollars and a gallon of gasoline is over $15. People are starving, suffering, and running for their lives. This is definitely the hardest time I’ve experienced in Haiti, and people ask me why I still go. It’s clear to me that this is not the time to pull out; this is the time to push in. The children, the women, and the families are most vulnerable at this time, and we cannot look away. To me, this is more than a brand, a business, or a nonprofit; this is about the real lives we are impacting. And we cannot give up.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Impactful Market is a social enterprise on a mission to end poverty through dignified jobs, giving a hand-up to break the cycle of poverty. We believe there is transformative power in a business model that cares about the people & the planet. Our purpose is to give villagers, refugees, and marginalized individuals the opportunity to gain self-sufficiency through fair trade employment that provides a fair & living wage. Every purchase we make can have the power to change someone else’s life for the better.
We go to great lengths to ensure that every product we carry is made with quality and care. Our Haitian coffee is among the best in the world and delivers a unique experience that connoisseurs and casual drinkers can enjoy. Our hand-crafted jewelry displays the endless creativity of each artisan, featuring resources like upcycled cattle horn and bone, aluminum pots and pans, and beads made from clay and cereal boxes. The home goods collection boasts many impressive pieces: cheeseboards and serving ware made of mahogany wood and cattle horn and bone; charming hand-crocheted coasters bursting with personality; and bold decor made from discarded oil drums and macrame. And those are just a sample of our offerings!
We pride ourselves on knowing where each product comes from. Since 2013, I have personally met with our artisan partners across Haiti and beyond because we value relationships at the core of everything we do. We are the bridge and the platform for their stories to be told around the world. We curate collections for conscious consumers at affordable prices with contemporary designs that also reflect the culture from which they are made. We use sustainable practices, such as recycling and upcycling in our production process for waste reduction. We celebrate the unique qualities of our handmade goods & the makers behind them.
Beyond supporting fair trade jobs through our products, we give back to a small village called Fond Doux, Haiti, through our nonprofit, Impactful Missions. To date, we have given out over 500 scholarships to send children to school and even hosted the first graduation in our village in 2016! In 2023, we started a school called Impact International Institute of Haiti, where we are providing stable employment, fighting childhood hunger, and raising up the next generation of leaders through quality education!
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Make an impact with your every purchase. From your daily cup of coffee to a thoughtful gift for a friend, when you shop online at impactfulmarket.co, you will provide hope for our artisans and farmers in Haiti. Your purchasing power can help someone break out of the cycle of poverty, send their children to school, and feed their family.
Want to carry our products in stores and increase your impact? We are growing our wholesale collection at https://impactfulmarket.faire.com
Be a part of creating a safe space for our little ones in Fond Doux, Haiti. Our ongoing monthly expenses for our school include salaries for staff members, school meals for our students, and so much more. We need your help to continue fighting childhood hunger, providing stable employment, and raising up the next generation! Your monthly support will make this real-life impact happen in this happy little corner of the world @ www.impactfulmissions.org/impact-international
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.impactfulmarket.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/impactfulmarket
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/impactfulmarket
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@impactfulmissions
- Other: https://www.impactfulmissions.org
