Eva’s Phoenix Print Shop

Profile

Eva’s Initiatives has served homeless and at-risk youth through their three Toronto shelters since 1994. Always focused on long-term solutions to break the cycle of youth homelessness, Eva’s Initiatives has developed innovative programs to help their clients get and stay off the streets.

In 2002, Executive Director Maria Crawford started the Phoenix Print Shop with two goals: provide an effective training site for youth in the employment and training programs and generate revenue for Eva’s Initiatives.  Located at Eva’s Phoenix, a transitional housing and employment facility, the Print Shop is a social enterprise and an integral part of Eva’s Initiatives innovative programming.

The Print Shop is widely recognized not only for its ingenuity, but its success for its participants, and increasingly for its business triumphs.  The graduates of the Print Shop’s training program, the Foundations of Print, prove the program is meeting their needs.  Most (57%) move on to full-time jobs and many (16%) return to school.  Some start their own businesses or hold part-time jobs.  More than half of all youth who joined the Print Shop have improved their housing situation, moving out of shelters or other housing and into independent or better accommodations. In 2007, the Print Shop was awarded a “Vital Idea” award from the Toronto Community Foundation, acknowledging the creativity and innovation used to find a practical solution to the social problem of youth homelessness.

While clearly a successful training program for at-risk youth, the Print Shop’s business has evolved considerably since its inception.  In the early years for example, they focused on “low-hanging fruit” print job opportunities in the non-profit sector.  However, they soon sought more substantial contracts with corporations and institutions like Toronto Hydro, Bombardier, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, TD Bank, and the Toronto Training Board.  These provide more regular business and help the Print Shop move closer to their goal — a sustainable business model and 100% cost recovery.

The Print Shop has also successfully utilized their advisors and networks.  Their 12-person advisory board, comprised of current and retired members of the print industry community, helps with sales leads as well as strategic direction.Much of the Print Shop’s equipment has been donated through these connections or through creative solutions like the loan of two Heidelberg presses, arranged through the network.

The Print Shop enjoys support from the Toronto Enterprise Fund (www.torontoenterprise.ca), an organization that supports the start-up of social enterprises that provide transitional or permanent employment for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. In June 2008, the Print Shop received a grant of $75,000 over three years, becoming the first “investee” of Social Venture Partners Toronto (www.svptoronto.org), a diverse network of professionals who are pioneering a new model of giving — venture philanthropy. The group’s aim is to bring its collective expertise and resources to innovative nonprofits in Toronto, collaborating with them to strengthen their organizations and expand their capacity to transform local communities. SVP Toronto is a chapter of Social Venture Partners International.

With support from SVP Toronto and Framework Foundation, The Print Shop has recently launched an innovative marketing plan called Community Print Club (www.communityprintclub.org) that is encouraging 50+ non-profit and charitable organizations to pool their print needs together and provide predictable steady work to The Print Shop.

Like many social enterprises, Eva’s Phoenix Print Shop is a “triple-bottom line” entity, meaning they strive for profit, social outcomes, and environmental sustainability.  The Print Shop is powered by green energy and the team was certified by Forestry Stewardship Counsel as part of their environmental commitment.