Održivo društvo / Kalliopi

Social enterpreneurship Odrzivo drustvo LLC manufactures and sells handmade, high quality women’s business shoes, house/working slippers and summer slippers, moccasins and espadrilles. Currently all employees (6) are women, some of which are with minor or bigger disabilities (2). LLC invests 75% of profit into local community, what is left is invested into production, education, initial capital and strengthening the LLC’s position on the market.

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No profit is taken form the LLC because the owner and founder of the Odrzivo drustvo LLC is NGO Prospero, which is a non-profit organization. LLC’s mission is a stable and competitive production of women’s and men’s shoes for professional, casual and sports use, empowering and educating women, lowering an unemployment rate of the socially threatened and/or excluded members of rural area where we are located.

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Founding NGO Prospero is a non-profit organization which is concerned with educating prioritized members of the local community, social care of those in need (old, financially dependent and persons with disabilities), ecological impact and preservation of the natural world in surrounding area, preservation of natural, cultural and historical heritage.

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During its many years in existence and service to the local community NGO Prospero, among other projects started recycling various materials, such as cloth and plastic bags -practices that are inherited by Odrzivo drustvo LLC production and culture.

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LLC has 2 stations for plastic bags and clothes/cloth collection, from   which are new products created (creating circular economy). Plastic bags are cut, connected and fed into loom for production of reusable shopping/beach bags. Clothes which still can be used are collected, washed and given to financially dependent members of the community, cloth and clothes that are not suitable for use are cut into cloth for hand washing/wiping and are sold to shipyards. Denim jeans are kept and recycled into products (women’s summer slippers out of denim jeans).

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Odrzivo drustvo LLC achieved funding by ESF and carried out a 2-year project from march 2021. – march 2023, during which LLC employed new workers, educated those employees, invested in equipment, increased the number of products and sales, improved production quality and successfully marketed its brand “Kalliopi”.