Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Carpenter.
Hi Lauren, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started out in the social enterprise sector as a consumer. I’ve always loved shopping for goods that gave back to people, the environment, and the community. In my mid-20’s I learned that human trafficking was happening all around me here in Nashville, and I wanted to do something about it. One of my best friends and I started a project we originally called t-615 that quickly turned into BRANDED Collective. Over nine years, we partnered with a local non-profit and employed trafficking survivors here in Nashville. Overall we worked with about 25 women and sold about 50,000 pieces of jewelry.
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?
I can’t say it’s been “smooth” per say, but it’s been full of so many good things! BRANDED closed in 2021 because we just couldn’t survive the pandemic financially. We had formed a for-profit entity that was largely sustained on in-person sales at events and via our wholesale accounts. But then with COVID and all of the unknowns that it brought about, 80% of our sales disappeared almost overnight. We paid the two survivors we were working with until we absolutely couldn’t financially do it anymore. We felt good about how we put the mission first and always thought about the business as inseparable from that mission and the people behind it.
Looking back, there are many other times I can say that I also had to learn things the hard way, but in the end I believe there is a worthy story to tell amongst all of the struggles we experienced along the way. If we hadn’t closed our business, I wouldn’t have discovered the wonderful mission of Lazarus Artisan Goods and San Lazaro Coffee, the social enterprises I have been blessed to steward for the last four years!
As you know, we’re big fans of Mission Lazarus. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Mission Lazarus takes a relationship driven approach to serving others. Our focus is on the whole person, and our goal is to help them grow spiritually, thrive physically, learn actively, and earn sustainable wages. I have the privilege of leading our two social enterprise ventures, Lazarus Artisan Goods and San Lazaro Coffee. Lazarus Artisan Goods provides job training, employment and fair+ wages to artisans in underserved communities in Honduras and Haiti through the creation of beautiful leather goods and wood products. San Lazaro Coffee employs an incredible team of women on our mountainside year-round at our coffee farm in Honduras.
The work I get to do here in the U.S. is geared toward designing new products, marketing them and selling them through retail and wholesale channels. It is truly FUN work and there is never a dull moment!
The thing I’m most proud of is how our mission treats its people. We believe in showing God’s love through all we do, and that makes for a pretty amazing work environment.
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
The best way you can support our work is by purchasing our products or donating to the mission directly. Take a peek at the links below. To shop in person, visit Painted Tree Boutique in Madison and check out our full line of leather goods!
https://www.missionlazarus.org/
https://lazarusartisangoods.com/
https://sanlazarocoffee.com/
Pricing:
- Artisan goods priced from $5 – $265
- Specialty coffee and accessories priced from $16 – $100
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.missionlazarus.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/missionlazarus/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/missionlazarus/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@missionlazarus3552/videos
