Ruslan Martsinkiv: Social business is one of the good deeds we are doing together with international organisations

The first social atelier engaged in sewing and repairing clothes and items for military personnel, internally displaced persons and low-income citizens has opened in Ivano-Frankivsk. The atelier has already completed its first order of making 69 winter sleeping bags for our soldiers on the front lines.

The atelier located on the second floor of the “Veles” Shopping Centre at 225 Vovchynetska Street is equipped with 10 professional sewing machines that were purchased as a part of the “EU4Business: SME Competitiveness and Internationalisation” programme, which is co-financed by the European Union and German Government and is implemented by German Federal company “Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH”.

The project with the namesake title “Social Atelier” is being implemented by the “Etalon” Public Centre with support of GIZ. This endeavour is in line with the Partnership and Cooperation Memorandum between the “Etalon” Public Centre and the Executive Committee of Ivano-Frankivsk City Council and the “Program of Supporting Small Business in Ivano-Frankivsk” the public centre participates in.

The sleeping bags for the soldiers on the front lines were made from special blankets and comply with all technical standards. Soon, the atelier will make several dozens of bed linen sets for the Centre of Compact Stay of the IDPs. A thousand meters of the fabric has already been acquired for that.

“All the profit we receive will be directed to the social projects our organization is implementing,” stated Lesya Aronets, CEO of “Etalon” Public Centre. “In addition to providing clothes repair and sewing services, we will also provide training to those who wish to learn how to sew.”

The “Etalon” Public Centre has already implemented more than 40 projects, with 75% of them being international ones. As a part of the “EU4Business: SME Competitiveness and Internationalisation” programme, its experts were involved in creating more favourable conditions for business environment development in the local community in May-July 2022. As a part of this initiative, with support of the Department for Economic Development, Environment and Energy Saving of the Ivano-Frankivsk City Council, “Etalon” received 10 industrial sewing machines and opened a new structural division, starting a social business on its basis. The main task of the project is to attract women, who have found themselves in a difficult living situation, to sewing and organize educational interactive “Cutting and Sewing” courses for internally displaced women, subsequently providing jobs for the most motivated of them at the centre’s sewing workshop.

“Social business is a very good deed, especially in today’s conditions, when we need to support the military and internally displaced persons. And this is one of the good deeds we are doing together with international organizations,” stated Ivano-Frankivsk Mayor Ruslan Martsinkiv.

AUTHOR: Ruslan Martsinkiv

Source: Halytskiy Korespondent