Sew Detroit Worker Co-op

Several Michigan-based organizations and businesses are coming together to establish a 100% worker-owned sewing cooperative in the city of Detroit. The cooperative will serve apparel brands (local, regional, and national), event planners, designers, retailers and local communities by completing high-quality sewing contracts in a timely manner. This project is intended to serve as a job creator in a local community, as well as to be a catalyst for a dynamic new entrepreneurial garment industry in Detroit.

There is a meeting for potential worker-owners Thursday, September 6 at 4pm at the All Saints Neighborhood Center (8300 Longworth, Detroit). For details, email  mstermer@unidetroit.org. 

If you think you might be interested in joining this project as a potential worker-owner, please fill out the worker survey here. 

Sew Detroit Worker Co-op needs your help in finding experienced, responsible, enterprising individuals who may be interested in becoming worker-owners in this venture. If you think you would like to get involved as a worker-owner in a sewing cooperative, please fill out the attached survey and send it to the address included in the attachment. If you know anyone else who might be interested, please forward this message to them.

To see a short video about the project, click here.

Sew Detroit Worker Co-op believes that Southwest Detroit is an ideal location for this project: sewing skills abound in the neighborhood, it is centrally located and home to several transportation centers, and residents are entrepreneurial-minded. The partners involved in this project are committed to helping this new co-op by assisting it in finding funding sources, contracts, training and educating the members with the skills and knowledge needed to run a cooperative business, and creating the legal and organizational structure.

Involved partners include:

• Maggie’s Organics - An Ypsilanti-based organic clothing company that is an early-adopter of the Fair Trade apparel sector and helped launch two other sewing cooperative projects, one in North Carolina, the other in Nicaragua.
• Urban Neighborhood Initiatives  - A nonprofit organization dedicated to human and community development in the Springwells Village Neighborhood in Southwest Detroit.
• The Center for Community Based Enterprise (C2BE) - A Detroit non-profit that educates, connects and helps “community-based enterprises” companies that are sustainable, locally-rooted, structured to provide community benefit and committed to paying living wages?to build an inclusive, sustainable, local economy.
• Michigan Economic Development Corporation - The state’s marketing arm and lead economic development agency. MEDC, founded in 1999, also developed and manages the state’s popular Pure Michigan brand.
• Center for Empowerment and Economic Development (CEED) - A nonprofit organization committed to empowering women and minorities economically through business training, supplier certification, business-to-business networking and accessible capital assistance programs.
• Eleanor G. Fuchs - Co-Manager of the Michigan Garment Industry Council