Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Vicki Moore. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Vicki, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

I had served as a volunteer at an orphanage in India several times and loved India, the people and the children. In 2004, after 3 or 4 visits learned about human trafficking in India. The average age a girl is trafficked for sex work is 9 years old and India trafficks more children than any country in the world. This was shocking to me. I then watched a video of a young woman that had been rescued. Her story went like this, “I was sold when I was a little girl. I never got to go to school, I can’t read or write, and I can’t get a job. I am not asking for a free hand-out but for someone to teach me to do something.” Her story really got my attention. I immediately thought, “I can teach you something”! I never questioned doing something. I did research and checked with people I had met in India. I set up several meetings and went to India to determine who and what was our best fit. We began as an aftercare home for women rescued from sex-trafficking. Women could live there or just come for the day to receive free services. 18 years later we have a prevention program for children and teenage girls, we provide direct rescue services for women and children, we have a women’s drug and alcohol detox and rehabilitation center, and we began a preschool. We are a non-profit however 70% of our funding comes through product sales and 30% donations. The product sales gives us an opportunity to give women from our organization as well as others an opportunity for dignified work.

Vicki, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I have a business background, I have been married for 43 years. We have a son and a daughter and 5 grandchildren. in 2004 I read about human trafficking specifically to India and was compelled to do something. We began a home where women could come for education, vocational training and counseling. We pay women for the items we teach them to make and sell those items here in the U.S. We are not just there to teach a trade but our model is holistic in helping each person we work with move forward to a positive, dignified and sustainable place. Currently, our work is in 4 states in India. We provide services for 120 women in an aftercare home. We work with the state for repatriation of minor girls that have been rescued from trafficking. The minor girls home maintains about 70 girls ages 5 to 18. We provide 1 repatriation each week. 5 days a week we tutor approximately 130 children working with the family to keep them in school. We provide life skill classes for teenage girls, usually 30 girls each week. We have staff that work in a red-light area of about 1200 still being trafficked. Our goal is to get as many women and children out as possible. We provide social services to these women to build trust and relationships to get them out of trafficking. We began our own preschool, we have 50 students. We also have a women’s drug and alcohol detox and rehabilitation center. We house women here while going through the process, capacity 12 women. Our non-profit is built on a business model and receives 70% of our funding through product sales and 30% through donations. This is a model we are very proud of. This allows us to give not only our women work but work to other organizations as well. We operate 2 retail stores in Georgia, one in Gainesville and the other St. Simons Island. We have an on-line store and can offer our products for wholesale to other stores across the country.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

This did not begin as a marketing or sales story but is now one of our best. A little back information. We rent a building in the middle of a large red-light district. Our staff go there 5 days a week. We can’t say that we are there to rescue women and children or our staff would be in trouble. So we are social workers. We wanted to provide some small simple vocational skill that would give the women some money they could save. We came up with a simple bracelet of three rings of memory wire with natural stone beads covering the wire. The only skill needed was to turn the end of the wire so the bead won’t fall off. It made the women feel good to make something beautiful. The first time we paid them they said “this is the first “good money” we have ever made”. Meaning the money came from a good place. We were blown away by the statement and decided to name the bracelet the “Good Money” bracelet. The bracelet comes with a card telling the story and that good money means dignity. The Good Money bracelet is our best selling bracelet. We even had a friend to come up with the idea a couple of years ago to get all of her friends to sell at least 10 bracelets to their friends. Women were so excited to help and share the story that we ended up selling about 2000 bracelets from that one idea and women connecting with women. Check out our Good Money bracelet at rahabsrope.shop

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

Yes, we make some of our product but also work with others to develop new product. My husband and I have business backgrounds but not product development so it was a lot of trial and error and market research to see the latest trends. We knew for the beginning of our mission that we would teach women vocational skills but that didn’t mean they could just go get a job after training. Our goal was not to be a factory but to be the interim where women could be trained and make money until they could find dignified jobs in their various communities. 35 to 40% of the products we sell in our stores and on-line are made by the women we work with and train. The remainder comes from similar organizations that need an outlet to sell their product; small family businesses we have developed relationships with in India and fair trade organizations. Many of our products from other organizations are designs we have developed with them and sometimes it is items they were already making but needed an outlet. Don’t try to reinvent the wheel. Find companies and organizations that you feel are like minded and that have been successful and follow them. Learn from those that have gone before you.

Contact Info:

• Website: rahabsrope.shop
• Instagram: rahabsrope
• Facebook: rahabsropeindia