SOKO is a manufacturing platform and ethical lifestyle brand that brings together artisan communities in the developing world with consumers worldwide. Their innovative supply chain uses mobile technology to connect independent artisan entrepreneurs directly to SOKO and the global marketplace. SOKO has created proprietary supply chain technology that transforms the mobile phone into a powerful business tool. Through their distributed production model, what they call their “virtual factory”, they have created a mobile enabled supply chain that empowers artisans in underserved communities to sustainably improve skills, manage and grow their businesses, and access the global market. SOKO's technology organizes over 2300 independent, distributed artisans into an efficient and demand-responsive “virtual factory” enabling their artisan workshops to earn 4.8X more than an average Kenyan workshop.
Jewelry supply chain increases income by 5x for marginalized artisans in the developing world.
FOUNDED
2013
AREAS OF IMPACT
Gender Equality Employment Poverty
HEADQUARTERS
San Francisco, California, United States
COMPANY SIZE
51–100
Joanne Calabrese (CEO at Soko) has been an Unreasonable Fellow since October 2014 and most recently participated in Girl Effect Accelerator.