Vintage empowerment: Haboydem

ON my most recent visit to Israel just prior to Rosh Hashanah I visited an amazing establishment.

I discovered that the age of the trendy thrift shop is beginning to dawn in Israel, providing opportunities for some who cannot afford everything new. But as was also emphasised to me, just as there is still some stigma attached to second-hand clothing (and other items as well), there is also a stigma attached to people with mental illness.

The uniqueness of this establishment, Haboydem (Yiddish for “attic” or “storage space”), is that it tackles both stigmas at once, doubling as a social business that provides transitional employment for clients of Shaf Yativ, a not-for-profit organisation that finds new ways to integrate people with mental illness into society.

The shop is staffed by men and women from Shaf Yativ, working in three-hour shifts under the supervision of a manager and occupational therapist. The plan is to accommodate about 35 clients annually, each for about six to nine months, until they are ready to move into permanent employment elsewhere.

“We saw that a lot of our clients want to get into the workforce but don’t have the tools,” said Haboydem co-founder Guy Avihod. “Many have been out of the workforce for years – or were never in the workforce – because of mental illness. So they haven’t learned how to listen to a boss and accept orders, and they don’t believe in themselves and can’t present themselves as employees, even though they may be talented and completely ­stable.

“We looked for new avenues for rehabilitation incorporating real work experience,” said Avihod. “This is a perfect vehicle for us because the more people come in, the more rehabilitation happens as our workers interact with them.”

The grand opening of Haboydem’s first premises took place in September 2014 at a spacious store in Talpiot that looks inviting enough to lure in even those who intend to just drop off donations and leave. People think they will not buy anything, but then see great dresses, great pants, great quality. (On visiting the store recently I saw some donated never-used designer shoes, originally priced at $1600, available for a few hundred shekels.)

Shaf Yativ distributed flyers in Jerusalem’s well-to-do neighbourhoods, emailed synagogues throughout the city and spread the word via Facebook.

“People have given us tens of thousands of articles of clothing. A young girl in Yavne collected clothes for us for her bat mitzvah project, and continued to collect tons of clothes afterward,” said Avihod.

At the Hadar Mall near to the Talpiot premises, Baruch Riner, owner of the Tamnoon clothing-store chain, was so taken with the idea that he donated racks, shelves and hangers, and offered advice on running the store.

Avihod added: “People are excited about the social entrepreneurship model; they see that giving clothes to us is the highest form of tzedakah because the money goes to the people working here and gives them a place to learn how to support themselves.”

The aim is that the business eventually become self-supporting. However, seed money came from long-time Shaf Yativ supporters such as Elie and Hindy Lederman of Ra’anana and the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation.

The Ledermans have also been active in the development of business strategies for the enterprise, such as sourcing partners in the broader community and via social networks.

“We love the idea of a social enterprise that can empower the community to help people help themselves in an innovative business,” said Melbourne-born Elie Lederman. He is currently visiting Australia to raise awareness and create friends of this enterprise that emphasises self-sustaining, green, integrated rehabilitation with broad community support.

Lederman would like to engage the community in Melbourne in a number of ways. He suggests:

• Come and shop in the store when in Israel – absolute bargains in a delightful shopping environment.
• Join our volunteer program when in Israel, even for a few hours and see for yourself.
• Become involved in clothes drives.
• Be part of our Facebook community, and see the dynamic nature of what is happening in Jerusalem. Look for Haboydem on Facebook, with the bright red logo.
• Partnerships – business operations can support the rehabilitation activities of the store, so from a philanthropic point of view, it is self-sustaining.

Shaf Yativ is also supported by the Health Ministry and the National Insurance Institute, who are enthusiastic, as taking people out of institutions and full-time care saves the government millions of shekels.

Avihod sees Haboydem as “part of the rehab continuum, another way to give people a chance”. Even sorting donations is part of the rehab process, as the ability to make decisions is empowering.

“Things that are stained or torn or old we sell to a recycling company to make into rags for industry,” said Avihod. “The good clothes get hung on the racks and tagged. Our workers do all these tasks, and also help customers and stand at the register. It’s a big thing for someone to process a credit card. That’s a skill they can take anywhere.”

Haboydem is also talking to the Jerusalem City Council about employing people with disabilities to process the clothing donations in bins around Jerusalem. Councilman Hanan Rubin said: “Haboydem is a great cause that we are happy to support. It’s green, it’s social, it makes us – the residents – better people. And it’s profitable. What more can you ask for?”

Haboydem’s current address is 15 Tzeret Street, Talpiot. It is open Sunday to Thursday from 9.30am to 7pm See also www.haboydem.org.

However, Lederman’s vision is to build a chain of stores across the country, servicing populations in the periphery too. A second store, building on the success of the first store in Talpiot, is about to open at 4 Herbert Samuel Street, near Kikar Zion, downtown Jerusalem.

Elie Lederman is in Melbourne until Sunday evening, November 22 and then in Sydney until the following Tuesday evening. He can be contacted via email elie@haboydem.org or on his Australian mobile 0412 377 020.

This article incorporates material from an article by Abigail Klein Leichman that first appeared in The Jerusalem Post in October 2014.

YOSSI ARON