S H E | School Uniforms that Grow

While running a scholarship program for girls in Togo, Africa and supplying over 200 school uniforms, we realised a problem: students outgrow their uniforms part-way through the school year. This contributes to millions of girls dropping out of school in sub-Saharan Africa each year.

S H E Uniforms that Grow adjust in the areas where a girl’s body is changing most: shoulders, chest, waist, and height to fit every body type. Our innovative design minimizes fabric waste by 30%. Remaining fabric scraps are shredded and made into reusable menstrual pads, creating a zero-waste, circular economy.

All S H E uniforms are produced by women in Togo, Africa, where rural women spend less than three years in school on average. With 500 uniforms sponsored within the first two months of launch, S H E Uniforms are transforming adversity into opportunity for girls.

S H E uniforms address a number of problems affecting women including access to education, unsustainable fashion production norms, and unethical manufacturing models.

In most sub-Saharan African countries, uniforms are required to attend school, making uniforms the largest expense of schooling. The problem is not that school uniforms are required for school attendance, the problem is that the available options are too expensive and are not meeting the needs of students.

Girls outgrow their school uniforms part-way through the year and consistently miss school during their periods because they lack menstrual supplies. These challenges reduce school attendance, which ultimately causes a majority of girls in Togo to drop-out before they enter secondary school.

In addition, the clothing industry is the third-most polluting industry in the world and the second-largest consumer of water. The average piece of clothing will be worn seven times before it is thrown away, and three-fifths of all clothing will be sent to a landfill within a year of being produced. One in six people in the world work in the fashion industry, and 80% of garment workers are women. These women are notoriously subjected to abusive working conditions.

S H E currently serves girls in Togo, Africa in kindergarten through twelfth grade who are required to wear school uniforms. As commercial sales begin, we plan to expand throughout sub-Saharan Africa and into European and Asian markers.

In addition to serving girls who need uniforms, S H E employs 14 women in rural Togo to sew uniforms and manage our Togo campus, with an anticipated 25 additional jobs created throughout 2019. The majority of trained seamstresses in Togo have little to no educational background. As an employment benefit, S H E offers free adult education for the first hour of each work day to give women the education they’ve long been denied.

Currently, S H E is producing 500 donor-sponsored uniforms for distribution to girls across West Africa. In addition, 150 girls are enrolled in our empowerment programs where they receive full tuition scholarships, school uniforms, and year-round tutoring and skills training.

With S H E uniforms launching commercially in 2020, a large percentage of all profits will be used to provide school uniforms for girls who cannot afford them around the world. 

Our solution is a zero-waste school uniform that grows and menstrual pads that are made with scrap fabric from production. S H E’s unique manufacturing model will use blockchain enabled technology to track and verify the life cycle of each product and the working conditions of each employee to create the world’s first verifiably ethical and zero-waste school uniform.

The S H E school uniform grows 6 sizes and one foot in length. It adjusts in five areas to ensure that every girl who wears it will have a tailored fit, no matter her body type. When a girl eventually outgrows her uniform, she can easily return it to its original size and pass it down to a younger student who can wear it for years more.

The fabric is made with recycled PET plastic, preventing thousands of plastic bottles from entering landfill. S H E uniforms are designed to minimize fabric waste by an average of 30% compared to similar dress styles. All fabric scraps are shredded and transformed into reusable menstrual pads that are distributed to girls throughout our village in Togo. 

S H E is currently developing a blockchain enabled application to track all production, distribution, and recycling of the uniforms. With this technology, every customer will be able to scan a uniform label and see everything that went into making their garment and how the scrap fabric is repurposed. The customer can also view live working conditions including temperature of the factory, daily hours worked by employees, hours of education provided, along with many other ethicality indicators. 

S H E uniforms promote a zero-waste, circular economy by utilizing recycled materials, drastically increasing the lifespan of each garment, and repurposing waste fabric into reusable menstrual pads. With S H E setting the standard for verifiable and ethical manufacturing models and school uniform requirements rising globally, S H E has the potential to impact the lives of millions of women worldwide.

Our solution is innovative because it combines a unique product with an intentional manufacturing model to create a circular economy with tremendous impact for women.

Our product is innovative because it grows six sizes, and a foot in length, extending the lifespan of the uniform from several months to several years. It is produced ethically and sustainably, as its made from recycled fabric and other materials, and the waste is re-purposed to promote female entrepreneurship in the developing world through menstrual pad production and sales. The product itself is innovative, but what sets it far apart from anything on the market is the carefully curated business model that supports it: education and employment for women.

Our solution also removes one of the biggest barriers to education that families face: the high price of school uniforms. Each year, S H E provides school uniforms to underprivileged girls in Togo, eliminating the cost of uniforms for a family and keeping the girls in school longer.

Lastly, our solution is innovative because S H E will become the first garment factory in the world to track and verify the sustainability and ethicality of our practices with blockchain technology. Once developed, the S H E tracking system can be implemented in all types of apparel supply chains, creating an opportunity to transform a notoriously oppressive and environmentally harmful industry into a vehicle for empowerment and circular production economies. 

S H E Uniforms combine existing apparel technologies in an innovative way to create a stylish school uniform that can be expanded six sizes and a foot in length and easily returned to its original size. Each dress includes a combination of buttons, lacing, elastic, and hook and loop tape to allow the dress to adjust in the areas where a growing girl’s body changes most: her shoulders, arms, waist, bust, and height.

The fabric is also fundamental to the technological performance of the dress. In order to dramatically increase the durability and wearability of the dress, we use a textile made from smart polyester, and our next production cycle will use a textile created from recycled PET plastic.

We also aim to employ blockchain technology to enhance transparency and traceability within our supply chain. Through a blockchain-based application, S H E Uniform consumers will be able to track how many hours our seamstresses work each month, how much and how often they are paid, and the conditions (internal temperature and security) of our production facility. Consumers can also track how the scrap fabric from their garment is repurposed.

S H E uniforms solve for many challenges affecting girls in sub-Saharan Africa including: missing school for lacking school uniforms, outgrowing school uniforms, and missing school for lacking menstrual supplies. In addition, S H E uniforms address the negative environmental and social implications of the fast-fashion industry.

Many studies have shown that providing school uniforms is one of the most cost-effective ways to keep girls in school and increase attendance by up to 45% in some cases. Organizations have successfully provided uniforms to girls for years, but the S H E model is the first to offer a scalable, sustainable, and generational pathway to eliminating this long-standing barrier for girls because the proceeds from all S H E uniform sales are used to provide uniforms for girls who cannot afford them.

A typical garment is worn only seven times, or just two to three months, before going to landfill or an incinerator. S H E uniforms are designed to last the wearer up to three years before being handed down to a smaller girl. Because the uniforms can be easily recycled into menstrual pads at the end of their life cycle, it is our goal is to keep all S H E uniforms from ever entering landfill.

Also, S H E uniform patterns reduce fabric waste by 30% compared to similar dress styles. Remaining fabric waste from production is used to provide reusable menstrual pads for girls in rural Togo, making the uniforms zero-waste.

S H E currently serves 150 Togolese schoolgirls through our afterschool empowerment programs and employs a workforce of 14 Togolese women. After our first round of product distribution in Autumn of 2019, 500 girls across West Africa will receive sponsored S H E Uniforms and 39 women will be employed.

In one year, we aim to commercialize the S H E uniform and sponsor an additional 2,000 uniforms to schoolgirls in West Africa from retail sales. We also plan to sponsor 300 more girls in our S H E Togo empowerment programs and employ an additional 50 Togolese women in our office and production facility.

In 5 years, S H E Uniforms will have been commercialized for four years, with a goal of 1 million uniforms distributed to schoolgirls across the world. Our office and production sites will employ a total of 1,000 women and will serve 10,000 girls in the S H E empowerment programs.

In the next year, we plan to distribute 2,000 more uniforms to girls in West Africa and create 50 additional jobs for women in Notse, Togo. We aim to partner with a major organization that gives uniforms to girls in Africa, such as CARE International or Tailored for Education. We will scale our manufacturing capacity by hiring more women, purchasing more equipment, and increasing production space. We will also submit the patent application for the S H E Uniform and obtain trademarks for our brand.

We plan to commercialize the S H E uniform, and use the revenue from sales to fund uniform donations for girls in need around the world.

Our goal is 1 million uniforms sold or distributed within five years time. Upon reaching this goal, we plan to open a school for underprivileged girls in Togo. We will also build and operate a self-sustained factory where production of our uniforms and third-party orders will continue to scale. The factory will be IoT-enabled and connected to a S H E blockchain-based application that will track and display seamstresses’ hours, wages and working conditions along with environmental impacts of production. We aim to partner with 100 schools and organizations to distribute uniforms and implement S H E afterschool curriculum. Our goal is to have 1,000 Togolese women employed and 10,000 girls enrolled in S H E empowerment programs within five years.

The current barriers we face in scaling operations in Togo are the financial, technical, and market barriers of launching a successful product and manufacturing operation. In order to bring a product to commercial markets, we will need an initial $70,000 capital investment to acquire materials, provide training for our workforce, and bring S H E uniforms to market. Though thousands of women train each year to become seamstresses in rural Togo, there are no large-scale manufacturing operations in Togo. We will need to train our workforce for high-quality line production to meet the quality standards of western markets.

In addition, to successfully launch our uniforms in 2020, we are seeking additional support in logistics and market development for commercial sales. Gaining support in overcoming these financial, technical, and market barriers will allow us to scale our production and get S H E school uniforms in the hands of millions of young women who need them.

To overcome our financial barriers, we are launching capital campaigns with private donors and applying for grants to gain the initial investment needed to commercialize production of the S H E school uniforms. We’ve raised an initial $12,500 towards our goal of $100,000 from private donors and the Idaho Gap Fund to invest in equipment for our Togo facility. In addition, our private-label production projects with Kitsch company, Anna Schimmel, and Naturally Salon will be a significant revenue source for launching S H E uniforms.

To overcome our technical barriers, we are applying  for grants and have established partnerships with USAID, the U.S. Embassy in Togo, and Ethical Apparel Africa. Our Founder will be meeting with the U.S. Economic Counselor to discuss continued partnerships in Togo in July, and S H E staff members are attending the first 6 week training workshop in a three-year program in Accra, Ghana this July hosted by Ethical Apparel Africa and their Ghanaian production partners. We’ve also partnered with the University of Idaho Apparel, Textiles and Design department who offer on-going research, technical support, and advising.  

To overcome our market barriers, we’ve partnered with Because International, the organization behind the successful Shoe that Grows. S H E was selected to participate in their year-long incubator program in Boise, Idaho. We’re also conducting on-going market research with Stotlz Marketing Group, wear-testing our uniforms in Togo, and applying for additional accelerator programs to gain the necessary connections to bring S H E uniforms to scale.

Our solution team consists of four people: Payton McGriff  and Stacey Targee of Boise, Idaho, Clarabeth Smith of Paris, France, and Fawziyat Sani of Togo.

The S H E organization currently employs 14 women in Notse, Togo, as seamstresses, tutors, and Program Coordinators.

We’re the best-placed to deliver our solution because we’re a diverse team that has gained international support, partnerships, and momentum, while ensuring every operational detail results in positive change for S H E communities.

Payton McGriff is the founder and executive director of S H E. She has grown S H E from a classroom project to an international non-profit organization helping hundreds of girls; single-handedly leading S H E to win entrepreneurship competitions and grants, land partnerships with global brands, develop and implement effective after-school curriculum, and negotiate with local Togolese professionals to provide tutoring, medical care, and skills workshops for the sponsored girls.

Clarabeth holds a Masters degree in Fashion Studies from Parsons School of Design, and has significant experience in fashion consulting and fashion design. She has worked with major fashion houses in Paris and the US, and she has published research on sustainable fashion and ethical fashion, among other topics. She has Bachelors’ degrees in Business Studies and Education.

Fawzy is a communications expert based in Notse, Togo. She’s finishing a Masters degree in Communications at the University of Lome and has extensive knowledge of Togolese fashion markets and educational systems, which positions her best to negotiate with partners and suppliers in the local community.

Stacey Targee has extensive experience running for-profit and nonprofit startups. With a background in marketing, sales, and business strategies, she is best positioned to oversee the growing operations and distribution.

S H E currently has three groups of partners for product development, private-label projects, and organizational operations and growth:

• The Shoe that Grows and Because International in an Incubator to develop and test the S H E Uniforms that Grows

• Ethical Apparel Africa for technician training programs in Accra, Ghana

• ICPSD Africa as Togolese partner organization and cultural liaison in Notse

• University of Idaho departments of Business, Architecture, Education, and Apparel Textiles and Design for ongoing research, funding, curriculum development, operations design, and product development

• Boise State University for ongoing Vertically Integrated Project research

• Kitsch as a corporate sponsor and private label production client

• Anna Schimmel as a corporate sponsor and private label production client

• Holland and Hart as our pro-bono legal representation

• Barbara Waal as a patent attorney

S H E’s mission is to serve women and girls in Togo, Africa by creating education and employment opportunities. Currently, S H E sponsors 150 girls and ethically employs 14 women from low-income and low-education backgrounds in Notse, Togo in our after school programs and manufacturing facility. Girls sponsored by charitable donors receive new school uniforms, full-tuition scholarship, and skills training in our year-round after school programs. Women employed in our manufacturing facility receive ethical wages, skills training, and adult education programs.

Currently, donors in the US give $40USD to sponsor a uniform for a girl in Togo, with 500 uniforms sponsored this year. To eliminate waste, the scrap fabric from production of the uniforms is shredded and transformed into reusable menstrual pads that can be sold to young women in our village.

After commercial launch in 2020, S H E uniforms will be available for purchase in the US and Europe, and the proceeds will become the sustainable funding source for S H E education programs.

In addition to selling and producing uniforms, S H E also manufactures for private-label partners in the US and New Zealand. Four private-label projects will begin in Togo over the summer. These projects will employ women year-round in Notse and will generate the necessary revenue to launch S H E uniforms in 2020.

S H E is currently funded by sustained donations and grants. With the commercial launch of S H E uniforms and private-label production, our pathway to financial sustainability will be greatly accelerated and sustained by earned-revenue. Currently, S H E sponsors 150 students and employs 14 women in Notse, Togo through private donations. In addition to producing the S H E uniforms in Togo, we also produce for on-going private label partners in the US. The revenue generated from these projects is reinvested in the S H E | Togo program, and the long-term nature of the projects helps to mitigate for the seasonal production cycle of the uniforms.

In the long-term, S H E operations will be funded entirely through sales of S H E uniforms and private-label production in Togo.

We've designed a school uniform and built a business model that effectively solve for many challenges girls in sub-Saharan Africa face in gaining their educations, but we still need the advising, connections, and funding to scale S H E uniforms to their potential. We believe in the power of the S H E Uniforms, and we could benefit greatly from Solve’s help in the process of commercializing the uniforms. With the 12-month support from the Solve community, we would hope to gain partners and logistical advisors to bring S H E uniform production and distribution to scale.

We have a number of partners and mentors who have helped prepare us for the next phase of our journey, but we are seeking additional partners with organizations that give uniforms, private schools in the US who require school uniforms, and retailers who sell uniforms for profit. The demand for our uniforms exists: we have schools in two countries who have pledged to purchase them for their students, and we believe that many governmental and non-governmental programs would benefit from them as well. Solve connections could help advise on scaling our manufacturing capabilities and guide us through the process of taking our product to market.

S H E is seeking partnerships with organizations that provide school uniforms for girls in need like OneGirl, Tailored for Education, CARE, Plan International and a variety of others. We are aiming to sell wholesale uniforms to these organizations. Our major value-proposition to NGO partners is a long-lasting, high-quality uniform that’s ethically sourced and creates jobs for rural women.

S H E is also seeking partnerships with governments that sponsor school uniforms for students. For example, Ghana provides 10,000 school uniforms each year to students in need in their country, and we are working to position ourselves as the supplier for major initiatives like this.

In addition, we’re seeking partnerships with retailers and private schools in the US and Europe to begin growing retail sales of S H E uniforms.

The average piece of clothing is worn seven times before being thrown away, and nearly 60% of all clothing ends up in a landfill or incinerator within one year of being produced. With the S H E Uniform, we are introducing a garment that will be worn over 50 times longer than the average piece of clothing before being repurposed or recycled.

We anticipate each S H E Uniform will serve one student for 3 years, or about 500 wears. Once the girl grows out of the dress, she can return it to its original size and give it to a younger student. If the dress becomes damaged beyond repair, it can be recycled. The textile from the dress is shredded and sewn into reusable menstrual pads, which are sold by Togolese schoolgirls in local markets for income. 

The Circular Economy prize would be invested in zero-waste initiatives  including sourcing recycled PET plastic fabric, minimizing fabric waste in pattern designs, installing solar power for our factory, and repurposing scrap fabric into reusable menstrual pads. We will also utilize the prize to invest in energy-efficient equipment to turn our dresses into menstrual pads: a fabric shredder and additional treadle sewing machines.

A portion of the prize would also be used to provide interest-free microloans for girls in our after-school program to begin selling the menstrual pads. These microloans will enable the girls to afford inventory, transportation to markets, supplies for bookkeeping, and any other expenses they face as entrepreneurs.

S H E uniforms are designed to benefit women at every point in the dress’s life cycle: from thoughtfully created patterns made for treadle sewing machines, to scrap fabric being repurposed into reusable menstrual pads, the S H E uniform is designed to create a circular economy with multi-generational impact.

S H E would utilize the prize to advance job creation and adult education offerings for the women employed in Togo. Togo remains one of the toughest places to be born a girl, with the average education level for rural women being less than three years. We intentionally hire women from low-education and low-income backgrounds in our production facility. The highest level of education among S H E seamstresses was elementary school, with many never having stepped foot in a classroom. To address cyclical poverty, all S H E employees are guaranteed a salary well above the minimum wage, and are provided free adult education programs as an employment benefit. This prize will allow us to expand our health care offerings, adult education programs, and open an on-site child-care facility for our employees.

In addition, S H E would be able to scale our manufacturing space, allowing us to hire more women in rural Togo. Not only would this benefit the seamstresses through employment and the schoolgirls who would wear the produced uniforms, but it would also benefit the Notse, Togo community, as the manufacturing space would be used as a community center during the hours it is not operating.