Today, a conversation about what happens when a clever design school project turns into something much bigger.
From a 20‑pound prototype stitched in a grandparents' bedroom to a 21,000‑square‑foot facility on Detroit's east side… and 100,000 coats later... Empowerment Plan has become a made‑in‑Detroit way of literally keeping the world warm.
These are coats that turn into sleeping bags, sewn by Detroiters who have themselves experienced homelessness and are using this job as a stepping stone to what is next.
Founder and CEO Veronika Scott is my guest, and talks about building an uplifting ecosystem around that coat.
You will also hear how feedback from people actually using the coat reshaped its design and how a product made from seconds and dead‑stock fabric ends up serving people from Detroit to more than 20 countries.
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