*As a Coca-Cola Blogger, my travel and accommodations for the Coca-Cola 5by20 Art of Entrepreneurship Event were provided by the company.

 

My mother worked at a candy factory when was growing up. Our family and household was well and financially stable at first. But when my Dad left our family when I was seven years old, our two-income household became one, and things started to change.

My mother did her best to keep the lives of my older brother and I as normal as possible for as long as she could by working overtime and taking additional shifts at the factory, but it wasn’t enough. Soon, we had to move from our large 5-bedroom home in the middle-class area of town to a small apartment in what was known as the projects. Sometimes the gas would get shut off, and my Mom would use space heaters in our rooms, and rise early every morning to heat water on an electric hot plate for us to take our baths. We could no longer afford the extravagant dinners she usually prepared for us after work. Instead, we ate TV dinners and frozen potpies – whatever was the cheapest on sale. My brother and I started off in private school, but as money grew tighter and tighter, we could not continue in private school in the latter years of our education.

I would oftentimes see her crying because she could not afford to get the things that we needed for school, or even the necessities we needed for home. Most times, she sacrificed buying herself clothes or a new pair of much-needed work shoes just to take care of us. It hurt me so bad that I wanted to do something – anything – to help. So, whenever she would bring candy home from her job for us, I would store it up and take to school to sell to my classmates without my mother knowing; saving the money in a box under my bed as I got it. Then, I would take the money and sneak it into her room, leaving it in places where she could find it. I would hear her exclaim in joy about it, and her reaction used to put the biggest smile on my face.

I was always looking for more ways to assist my mother financially. Prior to us moving, I attended camp every summer, and one year they taught us how to make photo frames out of fabric and cardboard. I took what I had learned, cut up some of my old clothes that I could no longer fit, and used cardboard from old shoe boxes around the house to make the photo frames to sell to people in the neighborhood. And just like the candy, I would take the money and put it somewhere in my mother’s room where I knew she would find it.

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Those years were hard for us. I felt good to know that, while it wasn’t much, I was able to do something to contribute to our family. I am sure that my mother used the money to pay utilities and the rent for our apartment, and to buy groceries, toiletries, and school supplies. Luckily, things became better for us, and after five years, we were finally able to move out of the projects in into a much better place.

Just like millions of other women around the world, to make things better for our family was all that I and my mother wanted. We were willing to take whatever resources and skills we had and use them to make money to support our household. That is the reason why I can deeply relate to the personal stories shared by women artisans at the 5by20 Art of Entrepreneurship event at the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta, Georgia earlier this week.

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5by50 is Coca-Cola’s commitment to empower five million women entrepreneurs across the company’s value chain by the year 2020. Part of this empowerment includes women artisans from underprivileged communities around the globe, who take Coca-Cola beverage packaging materials and use them to create custom handmade items for purchase. The money generated from sells of the items provides the women with the income they need to support their families.

I heard the story of Sandy Yazmin Colohua Gomez, a 22 year-old woman from Chimulahaucan, a community near Mexico City. She shared her tough upbringing as a child of a landfill worker, and how the lack of money during those years motivated her to seek out better ways to provide for herself as she got older.

That is when Sandy discovered the 5by20 program in her community. Through the program, she learned about the art of weaving plastic labels, and used the skill to create custom handmade handbags. The money she earned from sales of the handbags has given her the income to finish school, provide for herself, and travel..

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In Sandy’s community, Coca-Cola’s 5by20 program works with Mitz Foundation, an organization that provides women with training and job opportunities and scholarships for education. The organization also works to preserve the planet by creating handmade products using up-cycled packaging materials.

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Judy Achar, Founder and President of The Mitz Foundation was at the event as well, and shared her personal story of why she was so passionate to start an organization such as Mitz.

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Kathleen Plate, Founder and Designer of Smart Glass Jewelry shared her personal journey as woman entrepreneur, and how just like me as a child, her entrepreneurial instincts shone through in her at a young age. Later on in life, she was able to combine that with her passion for environmentalism and education to not only launch her thriving glass jewelry business, but to also use her knowledge and expertise to partner with Coca-Cola and serve as a mentor to other women who dream of having the same success.

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“We have the power to touch all women across all of our units,” said Bea Perez, Chief Sustainability Officer of The Coca-Cola Company in sharing the meaning behind the Coca-Cola 5by20 initiative. And it is such a true statement. Since the initiative launched in 2010, 865,000 women have been empowered in 52 countries.

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At the end of the Coca-Cola 5by20 Art of Entrepreneurship Event, I got the chance to see some of the handmade items crafted by women artisans up close. The style, creativity, and attention to detail of each of the pieces is simply phenomenal.

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While viewing the pieces, I could not help but to think of the hands that made them. The women artisans who are able to buy essential items for their homes, and secure better access education for their children – all because of their involvement with the Coca-Cola 5by20 program. I also found it amazing that because of the handmade now being available for purchase online and in Coca-Cola stores throughout the United States, women in countries around the world will now have more income for themselves and their families.

The Coca-Cola 5by20 Art of Entrepreneurship Event is one that I will never forget. Coming into the event, I was feeling a little discouraged about my own journey as an entrepreneur. But after hearing the stories of Sandy, Judy, and Kathleen, and learning more about the challenges of women entrepreneurship in other countries, not only did I feel inspired and energized, I also felt empowered that I could make a difference in the lives of other women who feel the same way that I did so many years ago. It was truly a remarkable experience.

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 Coca-Cola 5by20 Art of Entrepreneurship Event 

For the first time ever, handmade items made by women artisans participating in the Coca-Cola 5by20 initiative can be purchased online. The collection includes something for everyone with a range of 15 products including handbags, jewelry, belts, iPad covers, holiday ornaments, decorative items, and notebooks. All the items are made from repurposed aluminum cans, plastic and glass bottles, Coca-Cola labels, can pull tabs and bottle caps.

The items are all uniquely handmade by women in Mexico, Turkey, Brazil, Philippines, Guatemala, UK and Kenya, and every item purchased directly benefits the women artisan and her community.

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You can view and purchase the items shown above and additional items from the collection online now at: www.Coca-ColaStore.com or www.ShopCoke.com and they can ship worldwide. The items are also available at the Coca-Cola Stores located in Atlanta and Las Vegas.

 

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 Coca-Cola 5by20 Art of Entrepreneurship Event 

To learn more about the 5by20 initiative, visit: www.5by20.com.

To learn more about the work of the Mitz Foundation, visit: www.mitz.org.mx. You can also connect with Mitz on Facebook and Twitter.

To see the full Coca-Cola line of glass jewelry by Kathleen Plate, visit: www.smartglassjewelry.com.

 Coca-Cola 5by20 Art of Entrepreneurship Event