Bernhardt hosts Afghani furniture manufacturer
Woman runs business from her tent
Tanya Merritte -- Furniture Today, December 15, 2008
LENOIR, N.C. — An Afghani woman who runs her furniture manufacturing business out of a tent paid a professional visit to Bernhardt Furniture here.
The visit was part of an apprenticeship program sponsored by Business Council for Peace, or Bpeace, which works with female entrepreneurs in a number of countries to help them expand their businesses and benefit their communities.
 Afghani furniture maker Fatima, third from left, is greeted in a visit to Bernhardt’s Lenoir, N.C., headquarters by executives William Howard, left, Anne Bernhardt and Heather Eidenmiller. Photo is courtesy of the Lenoir News-Topic. |
Fatima — whose full name and business name were withheld because of the political turmoil in her country — spent three days at Bernhardt's plant here. She is part of a group of 12 Afghani women, dubbed Fast Runners, selected for apprenticeships that include site visits, training, networking opportunities, mentoring and access to capital and markets.
Fatima, 42, was imprisoned after her husband was killed by the Taliban when she was a teen. After her release, she opened her furniture business in Iran in 1998 and moved to Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2004.
She employs and offers benefits to 77 women, all widows. They make beds, cupboards, sofas and kitchen, computer and office tables in a tent with basic equipment and electricity supplied by a generator.
At Bernhardt, Fatima toured the facilities and followed the production of a table from the design process to the finished product. She received parts and construction drawings to use for her business, along with advice from Bernhardt executives.
"We think we got more out of the visit than she did," said Anne Bernhardt, president of Bernhardt Design, one of the company's three divisions. "It's just amazing. Spending time with her, our lives seem so easy.
"Fatima's perseverance and dedication to her workers are inspiring," Bernhardt added, noting that Fatima employs a teacher for her workers' children and a company cook.
"I learned a lot at Bernhardt Furniture Co.," Fatima said through an interpreter. "I hope to have a Bernhardt kind of company in Afghanistan one day."
Steve Lawrence, a Bpeace volunteer who was Fatima's chaperone, said a top goal is to move Fatima's business into a building, which would provide more security and shelter from the weather. Fatima also would like to expand her business to other parts of Afghanistan, a country where only 21% of women are literate, according to the CIA.
Bernhardt Furniture got involved with Bpeace after the owners of New York-based juvenile furniture manufacturer Ducduc gave Anne Bernhardt's name to Lawrence. Fatima also visited Ducduc during her U.S. trip.
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