ABOUT US
WHO IS ELEVATE?
We are 501(c)(3) nonprofit impact organization that exists to catalyze lasting transformation in some of the world’s most underserved and conflict-affected regions.
Through the Elevate People Project, we partner with local partners and leaders to kickstart sustainable businesses, create dignified livelihoods, and build resilience in places where most organizations don’t go.
Leather is one way you can partner for impact.
WHAT WE BELIEVE
In many of the regions we serve, families live on less than $2 a day—often in the midst of conflict and instability.
Short-term aid is not enough.
We believe economic dignity—built through locally led business—is a powerful catalyst for lasting change. That’s why we serve as an Impact Catalyst, equipping and resourcing global partners to build sustainable solutions within their own communities.
We are not the solution. The solution already exists within the people we serve.
Our role is to come alongside and help bring that potential to life.
Where it all started
Jessica and Brandon's journey began with a life-changing trip to India during college, where they witnessed firsthand the hardships of families in extreme poverty. Two years later, inspired by a local family's dream to start a leather business for community upliftment, they founded Elevate.
founder story
2012
In the summer of 2012, my feet landed on an enormous garbage mountain in India. I was led by a few children through their “home.” They began showing me their job: collecting and sorting rubbish items for next to no pay, little food, and no access to education. We ventured down the road, through the smells and the smiles, and I felt somehow like I was in heaven. God loved these people, and so did I.
2012 (cont.)
As the weeks went on, we sat in homes, laughed, danced, and learned from local friends about the beauty and challenges of life in India.Â
A friend and mentor once told me there are two most important days of your life. One, the day you were born, and two, the day you find out why. And as Brandon and I stood on a rooftop that summer, we found our why. Our plans for our life were out the window, and our future would now be about something beyond ourselves - serving the world and choosing to look complex, devastating problems in the eye and engage them with love, relationships, and localized solutions.
2014
Two years later, Brandon and I moved back to South Asia, seeking to learn and discover. We felt like we needed to avoid coming in with solutions. But instead, to ask better questions and discover a pathway for long-term, localized impact.
2015
We were totally inspired, and with that, Elevate was founded—a non-profit social enterprise committed to providing ethically made, high-quality products for everyday life while perpetuating social change through small business initiatives from within the communities most affected by extreme poverty.Â
We believe that the people most affected by the world's injustices are the best people to take action long-term!
2018
A few months in, we met a local family tackling poverty, persecution, and exploitation head-on. Their solution wasn't massively formal; it was relational, beautiful, and had incredible capacity for long-term transformation! Inspired by their lives, we asked how we could be involved. To our surprise, they said, “Our dream is to start a leather workshop! We are leather artisans by trade and we want to work with our own hands, provide safe working conditions, and earn resources to continue being a blessing to our community.”
2024
And right now, we’re on a mission to continue bringing transformation to vulnerable families like those on the trash mountain through locally led, empowerment-based solutions and are on track to reach our goal of helping kick-start 1,000 small businesses by 2026.
We have big dreams for Elevate's global impact and invite you to join in on the journey. You are more than a customer to us, you are a partner and an agent of change.
leather
We started by selling premium, full-grain leather goods—because that was the first business we helped launch.
What began as a leather workshop in Kolkata, India became a model we’ve now replicated hundreds of times across 17+ countries.
The bags were never the end goal. They were the beginning.
Today, that same model has helped launch 700+ businesses rooted in local leadership, sustainable income, and long-term change.
Our leather goods remain one way we fund this mission—but they are just one part of a much bigger story.
Elevate hasn’t changed. We’re becoming more of who we’ve always been.
Donate to the elevate people project
Thanks to your help, we’re able to kickstart small businesses, empower women, and fuel hope around the world. Want to be part of the change? Give directly to the Elevate People Project—no purchase necessary.
"I'm able to make a higher wage than I was at the factory, because our prices are now set by us."
- Workshop Manager, Laxman
"I've always enjoyed working with leather. It's what we know. It's what we're good at."
- Workshop Manager, Faruk
"I've been able to pay for all my families bills. I feel a greater sense of self-worth than I've felt before."
- Small Business Owner, Joyce
