Mail Boxes Etc. Haiti
Providing Haitians with business services and low-cost, reliable package delivery while using a social enterprise model to generate profits to support community-led initiatives.
Racial and class disparities, created under slavery and perpetuated by colonial rule and ineffective governance, account for the majority of Haitian children’s limited access to quality education, nutrition, and healthcare. Haitian families cannot rely on atrophied national structures for support. It is therefore urgent to advance a pragmatic vision of equitable early childhood development in Haiti that makes local communities the agents of change.
Notably, the shipping industry in Haiti provides a potential pathway to community-driven change and sustainable development. Currently, in Haiti there exists no low-cost option to ship packages both in and out of the country. Haiti’s mail service is essentially non-existent, as are reliable internet services. By leveraging this clear gap in infrastructure and services, local communities may be able to apply a social enterprise model of change to bridge a service gap and simultaneously meet community needs.
Approach
The Mail Boxes Etc.* (MBE) enterprise establishes a global franchise as a locally-run business in Haiti. The doors to the first storefront in Cap-Haitian were opened in May 2023, with plans for several satellite locations throughout the region. Mail Boxes Etc. is working to drive local economic growth, employing and training local Haitians. Simultaneously, as part of its commitment to creating sustainable change in the community, MBE will feed profits back into the community through partnering with local schools to cover shortfalls in teacher salary, tuition, and infrastructure needs.
Operating under the guidance of the GC-DWC’s social enterprise team, representative community committees will decide how generated profits from their local franchise are utilized in their schools. This model both allows communities to chart their own course to change and provides a local source of financial sustainability and employment.
*Mail Boxes Etc. is a global brand operating in 43 countries and a leading third-party provider of shipping, fulfillment, print, and marketing solutions to small-and medium-sized enterprises and individual consumers via a network of independently owned and operated franchised locations.