- About firm
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COOPERATIVE CHERNOMORKA BURGAS
“It’s not just clothes that we make, we also bring joy to the kids, and satisfaction to their mothers…”
CHERNOMORKA (the Lady from the Black Sea)
Cooperative Chernomorka Burgas was established in 1950 by war invalids. Our main goal is to provide jobs to disabled people from the town and the region. Our main business is the production of babies’ and children’s clothes for 0 to 8-year olds. The company managers, designers and employees create fashion clothes for children. Our clothes are beautiful, comfortable, practical and functional. They have original design and high quality in line with the international standards. We use 100% natural materials, ecologically clean, easy to wear and resilient in use. They have been awarded five times with Gold Medals in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010 at the International Fair of Consumer Goods and Technologies in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
The team: the cooperative women power
Mrs Maya Ivanova – President of Cooperative Chernomorka is an innovative and successful manager from 1984. The enterprise survived during the hardest economic crisis in 90’s and during the current crisis continues to ensure employability for people with disabilities, in particular for disabled women. The team is high qualified, strongly motivated and open for disadvantaged people. The total of full time employed people reached 100 persons. 80 of them are women and 57 % are people with disabilities.
The innovation and sustainability
During the transition period from the communism to the market economy the people with disabilities was one of the most socially disadvantaged groups in Bulgaria. The existing cooperatives of people with disabilities, which continue to be the main source of employability for them, succeed quickly to adapt themselves to the new market conditions.
Ten years before, due to the European support through the PHARE pre-accession Programme and the European Social Fund we started to modernise our businesses and to adapt our working environment to the special needs of people with disabilities.
Our main goal is to provide jobs to disabled people from the town and the region and to support their social integration with a special emphasis on the integration of disabled women.
Our main business is the production of innovative and “green” babies’ and children’s clothes for 0 to 10-year olds under the own trademark “Small Mode”. The company managers, designers and employees create comfortable, practical and functional fashion clothes for children. Our products are of original design and reliably high quality according to the requirements of international standards. We use 100% natural materials, ecologically clean, easy to wear and durable in their use. The company maintains machinery and equipment to execute special clients’ orders. Chernomorka hold an ISO 9001: 2000 Certificate. We have been twice awarded by Gold medals – at the 24-th and the 26-th International Trade Fair of Consumer Goods and Technologies in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
The Battle: obstacles and difficulties overcome by the cooperative
The lack of financing and underestimating of the creative and innovative potential of people with disabilities are the main problems. During the period 2002 – 2011, Cooperative Chernomorka awarded 9 projects for integration of people with disabilities, funded by the State and European Social Fund and aimed at modernisation of the business and adaptation of the working environment. Additional cooperative support was provided by the National Union of Worker Producers’ Cooperatives in Bulgaria (NUWPC). Due to these projects, the cooperative started to develop in 2002 a new own trade mark “Small Mode” for production of baby and children clothes and created new jobs for disadvantaged people.
The current economic crisis is a great challenge but even that Chernomorka continue successfully to provide for employment for people with disabilities and even to realise profits.
Current situation and perspectives for the future:
The enterprise is equipped with new technology; all types of machines for a new modern production were bought.
NEW: Cooperative Chernomorka will participate in the first European Fair of Social Enterprises on 29/03/2012 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, co-organised by the European Commission.
Corporate Social Responsibility
The buildings were entirely modernized including thermal isolation and air conditioning. Healthy and safe working conditions, including special facilities, have been created for the employees, who are in their majority people with disabilities. We have a contract with a service of labour medicine. On this basis, regular measurements of working conditions and risk assessment are made in the enterprise. The working conditions are in full compliance with the current legislation.
The cooperative provides their members-workers various opportunities to increase their qualifications, by specialized courses and trainings.
Under a programme for the rehabilitation of people with disabilities, specially developed by the National Union of Worker Producers’ Cooperatives, the cooperative members use the bases of the cooperative company Tourmedico in the towns of Bankya, Stara Zagora and Primorsko and benefit from individual rehabilitation programmes during their paid annual leaves.
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