Social Entrepreneurship

Benglish Crafts was Vialisa’s first company and produces to order as well as its own collection of functional, handy and fun items for the home, such as flags, baskets, and yoga mat bags, as well as decorations such as labels and goody bags. Benglish Crafts is run entirely by local staff and students; they are therefore expected to track stock, finance, and source materials themselves.

The intention is that this will be done independently in the long term and that Benglish Crafts will run entirely on its own income. Currently, in addition to the students, there is an alumnus employed by Benglish Crafts who has been promoted to supervisor and helps train the students.

Vialisa has the ambition to eventually open an NGO shop, where various NGOs can sell their products. This idea arose because several NGOs sell some nice products, but individually not enough to set up a shop for. As a result, it is sold here and there, but it is difficult for consumers to find the products. A shop for NGOs makes it easier for consumers and producers to find each other. However, setting up a shop is still difficult because there is a lot of competition between the various NGOs.