The Good Guys: Five Melbourne Social Enterprises Helping You Help Others

In the last couple of years there has been a noticeable rise in businesses starting up that are looking to help more than just themselves. In fact, it’s estimated that there are 20,000 social enterprise organisations currently running in Australia. An important thing to note with social enterprise is that these are not charity organisations; they often work with charities to distribute their profits but are not one themselves.

What they offer is a product, something that consumers actually want and can use, and they reinvest the profits from said product in ways that create a social impact. Some social enterprises are also interested in giving opportunities to those who need it most, in the form of employment or skills building. If you’re keen on helping others and receiving a great product at the same time, may we suggest you direct your dollars towards these guys.

One Night Stand Sleepwear

In 2011 Jamie Green was having a little trouble with a cafe he owned, which led to some uncertainty about his next move and where he was going to sleep at night. From that experience One Night Stand sleepwear, a social enterprise business directed to help youth homelessness, was born. “I knew that I wanted my next venture to address social issues, and my experiences with being young and having unstable living arrangements made me super passionate about issues surrounding youth homelessness, so it just made sense!” says Green.

Their products include everything from oversized boyfriend T-shirts to sleep in to socks covered in cute prints and pillowcases with ‘I’m Cactus’ scrawled over them. One Night Stand works with charity partners such as Open Family's Chatterbox bus service to distribute meals to youth sleeping rough. One Night Stand has attracted a young following, which is exactly who Jamie wants to engage, “I'm excited about the unique opportunity One Night Stand has in shifting consumer mindsets for young people,” says Green.

Who Gives a Crap Toilet Paper

Toilet paper is a totally obvious necessity that we don’t think twice about, except when we need to pick up a few rolls from the supermarket. But when Simon Griffiths, Jehan Ratnatunga and Danny Alexander learned that 2.5 billion people don’t have access to a toilet, they took matter into their own hands. Who Gives a Crap sells eco-friendly, 100 percent recycled toilet paper online, and they donate 50 percent of their profits to WaterAid to build toilets and improve sanitation in the developing world. “On average, every roll sold provides someone in need with access to a toilet for one week,” explains chief operating officer James Castles. “We've turned a mundane, everyday product into a powerful force for social good that is changing lives, one crappy pun at a time!”

Dear Gladys Vintage Clothing

Located in Melbourne, Dear Gladys is a vintage clothing and accessory shop owned and operated by the good people behind Fitted for Work, a not-for-profit organisation that raises money for disadvantaged women and helps them re-enter the workforce. “We help transform the lives of women experiencing disadvantage by providing them with the skills and confidence to get work and keep it through our various client programs,” says retail manager of Dear Gladys Mel Westwood.

Fitted For Work also works with The Conscious Closet Sale, on at the end of every month in Melbourne’s CBD. Dear Gladys sells a range of vintage clothing and accessories from '50s formal dresses to more modern pieces. All proceeds from Dear Gladys go to Fitted For Work. “Guilt free shopping for a great cause! What more could a girl want!” says Westwood.

Also Check Out: The Social Studio is a fashion school, a designer clothing label, a cafe, and a community space. It is also a social enterprise that provides support to new migrant and refugee communities in the form of clothing production, retail and hospitality, and encourages young people to follow their aspirations. Great clothes, great coffee — get down to Collingwood sharpish.

Thankyou Water, Food and Body Care

When a grotesque amount of the world’s population does not have access to clean water, and Australia alone spends $600 billion on the bottled water industry, it’s pretty clear something isn’t adding up. “We set out to start a bottled water company that would exist solely to give all profits to safe water access projects in developing nations,” says managing director and cofounder Daniel Flynn. “There were already so many fantastic charities doing great work, so we thought that instead of starting another charity, we’d start a social enterprise and partner with those charities to implement high quality projects.”

Thankyou has also launched a food range and body care range to tackle the issues around food aid and hygiene in disadvantaged areas. To date, Thankyou has funded safe water access for 90,368 people, health and hygiene training for 87,765 people and short-term food aid and long-term food solutions for 15,216 people (and it no longer funds the evangelical group that landed it in trouble last year). "It's about educating and empowering consumers that they can make a difference, one product at a time," explains Flynn.

Also check out: Free Is Better water may not strictly be a social enterprise, but giving bottled water away for free benefits anyone and everyone. On top of that, the bottles are oxo-biodegradable, 100 percent recyclable and made from recycled materials. Free Is Better water is also about to be distributed internationally. Huzza!

Shebeen

Shebeen is more than just a banging bar/cafe with an excellent band room to boot; it’s also a non-profit business. They focus on selling exotic wines and beers from developing countries, with 100 percent of the profits being donated to seven different beneficiary partners located in these areas. For example, drinking an Ethiopian beer at Shebeen supports farmers in rural Ethiopia, and buying a glass of South African wine supports education projects in KwaZulu-Natal.

“We wanted to show that it is possible to run a business focussed on doing something good instead of just creating profit for the business owners," explains Shebeen’s director Simon Griffiths. Yes, that's the same guy involved with Who Gives a Crap. “Our hope was that Shebeen would challenge consumers to think a little bit deeper about what it means to be both buying things and engaging in philanthropy, and challenge business owners to think about different ways to run their business.” That’s one way to guarantee feeling great after a night out.

Also check ut: STREAT cafes in Melbourne are doing great work with youth homelessness and disadvantage. They assist young people who have been living on the street or are at risk of being on the street and offer a supported pathway to long-term employment. Put this one on your list of places to pop into on your lunch break.