Innovation

At first glance, the Local + Lejos website appears to be another home décor company, but you soon discover it is much more than that. It has truly become a business with a story. The name reflects its intention: “local” pertaining to the community nearby and belonging to a neighborhood, and “Lejos” defined in Spanish as pertaining to a place that is far away. The name perfectly describes the goal of this business: “a home décor company bridging communities near and far.”

Founder Sheeva Sairafi has created a company that focuses on empowering women by creating steady employment opportunities while helping them to acquire the sustainable skills they need to build a better life for their families and communities. “We create modern pieces traditional retail stores cannot offer at attainable prices. By delivering unique, handmade goods, we empower artisans to grow a business, preserve cultural traditions, and create sustainable futures for their families.”

Core to this business are the artisans. But these artisans can be hard to find. Sheeva mentioned many of the artisans do not have access to the Internet. The company finds the artisans through on-the-road research and builds relationships with them in their communities. The company initially started with artisans in Guatemala but quickly grew into other countries to expand their product offerings. The company now employs more than 100 artisans in Guatemala, India, Rwanda, Mexico, and Cambodia. The home décor product offering includes a contemporary collection of handmade products including blankets, baskets, bowls, pillows, and table linens.

Inspiration

Although the company did not come to fruition until a few years ago, Sheeva has been thinking and dreaming about the idea throughout her life. Raised in a multicultural home, she was also provided the opportunity to travel abroad in the summers and witnessed firsthand many of the injustices that exist in the world. As a young adult, she attended Boston University and also studied abroad in Spain. After graduation, she accepted a role at TJX (parent company to TJ MAXX and Marshalls) where she held roles in buying and merchandising. This opportunity afforded Sheeva to live in Boston, New York City, and Los Angeles. During her time in Los Angeles, she began to think about her next steps and was seeking to integrate what she was good at (merchandising and product management/retail) with what she felt compelled to do in life. After attending business school at UCLA, Sheeva embarked on a trip to South America, which seemed to cement her feelings to start a business. She was committed to “bringing opportunity to people who otherwise wouldn’t have it.”

When asked about her motivating factors for starting the business, Sheeva mentioned two very specific things. The first was her childhood experiences and her travels as an adult. “It was an idea that I was sitting on for a decade.” After finishing her degree at UCLA, she often asked herself “what if?” The idea kept building and building to the point where she said if not now, when? The second-largest motivating factor was marketplace trends toward more socially conscious brands. She mentioned that some larger clothing retailers that were popular a few years ago are slowly losing ground to some of the more socially responsible companies. She does realize that these large companies will likely never go out of business, but the trend toward more socially responsible companies like Local + Lejos is growing. “Everyone is building in a social component to their business.”

Overall impact

Sheeva is particularly proud of the impact of her company. Her response was that the mission of the company is “less about getting handmade products to people here and more about creating a connection across cultures. It is more than just about home products; it is about connecting people here with other cultures.” Seeing customers in the United States get excited about the stories of the artisans and the impact on their lives is what is most exciting to her. “I don’t want this to be a brand for the 1%; I want this to be something that a lot of people can afford but still provide work to these women without just providing a handout.”

Business benefit

The business process/model:

• Local +Lejos discovers artisans and unique handmade goods around the world.
• The company establishes a working relationship with the artisans to create contemporary designs to be sold to consumers online.
• The company eliminates traditional retail mark-ups and sells direct to consumers at reasonable prices through an online storefront.
• The items purchased are then delivered to the consumers.
• The company works with its artisan partners to provide training and resources.

The company attains profits from the margins it holds on the products it sells to consumers. The company is continuing to reinvest its profits directly back into the company to grow the number of artisan partnerships as well as the product offerings.

Social and environmental benefit

Most women in these countries do not have their own bank accounts. Typically, their husbands are in control of the income that is generated by the household. Sheeva mentioned the importance of putting the money the women artisans earn directly into their hands. This way, the artisan can be the decision maker of where the money is spent. Sheeva shared that if "a woman receives a dollar, she spends 80 cents on her children and family while a man spends only 30 cents.”

The company not only helps these women set up their own bank accounts, but also offers training tools on how to build up their savings and make decisions that better their families. Overall, the artisans that Local + Lejos employs make three times more working for the company than they did previously and are twice as likely to be enrolled in national health insurance than the rest of the country. Sheeva states, “Just those two things I think show that we are offering this sustainable aspect. They are able to invest in things that are important to their families, like health insurance.”

Interview

Sheeva Sairafi, Owner, Founder