ABLE is an American women's clothing and accessories retailer. The company was founded as a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

in 2010 by Barrett Ward and Rachel Ward to encourage women of

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Addis Ababa (; ,) is the capital city of Ethiopia, as well as the regional state of Oromia. With an estimated population of 2,739,551 inhabitants as of the 2007 census, it is the largest city in the country and the List of cities in Africa b ...

, to leave the commercial

sex industry The sex industry (also called the sex trade) consists of businesses that either directly or indirectly provide sex-related products and services or adult entertainment. The industry includes activities involving direct provision of sex-related se ...

. Then it converted into a

for-profit company A for-profit corporation is an organization which aims to earn profit through its operations and is concerned with its own interests, rather than the interests of the public (nonprofit corporation). Structure A for-profit corporation is usually an ...

and is classified as a

benefit corporation In business, and only in United States corporate law, a benefit corporation (or in some states, a public benefit corporation) is a type of for-profit corporate entity whose goals include making a positive impact on society. Laws concerning ...

. The company is headquartered in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

. Barrett Ward has been the

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

since the company was established.

History

The concept for ABLE began in 2008 when Barrett Ward and his wife Rachel were living in Ethiopia. At the time, Ward worked with Mocha Club, a nonprofit organization he co-founded in 2005. While at Mocha, he communicated with Women at Risk (WAR) organization and learned that women, who might otherwise resort to

prostitution Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, no ...

due to lack of opportunity, could be trained to weave scarves and sell them for a profit. Ward co-founded Ellilta, an Ethiopian scarf production company, to provide jobs for the women at WAR. Ellilta was ABLE's first product manufacturing supplier, which launched in October 2010.

Minka Kelly Minka Kelly (born June 24, 1980) is an American actress. She rose to fame for her role as Lyla Garrity on the NBC drama series '' Friday Night Lights'' (2006–2009). In 2011, Kelly starred in the films ''The Roommate'' and ''Searching for Son ...

brought ABLE scarves with her on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by actor and comedian Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It i ...

'' in October 2013. On October 22, 2014, Barrett Ward was honored by '' GQ'' at its seventh annual Gentlemen's Ball for his philanthropic efforts with ABLE. In 2019, the company was presented in the ''Nashville Fashion Week''.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , url=http://www.foxbusiness.com/features/2014/04/04/5-american-entrepreneurs-doing-good-business.html , title=5 American Entrepreneurs Doing Good Business , publisher=

Fox Business Fox Business (officially known as Fox Business Network, or FBN) is an American conservative business news channel and website publication owned by the Fox News Media division of Fox Corporation. The channel broadcasts primarily from studios ...

, date=4 April 2014 , access-date=9 March 2016 , author=Natalia Angulo "Business Entity Detail"
TN Secretary of State. Retrieved 2016-07-28. {{cite web , url=http://theeastnashvillian.com/blog/ENblogs/east-nashville-news , title=East Nashville News: Easties win Grammys, more Easties win East Nashvillian of the Year, FashionABLE coming, more , publisher=The East Nashvillian , date=13 February 2015 , access-date=9 March 2016 , author=Ellen Mallernee Barnes {{cite web , url=http://www.tennessean.com/story/money/2015/02/06/nashville-social-enterprises-purpose-beyond-profits/22982385/ , title=Nashville social enterprises have purpose beyond profits , publisher=Tennessean , date=6 February 2015 , access-date=9 March 2016 , author=Jamie McGee {{cite web , url=http://www.bizjournals.com/bizjournals/feature/smb-heroes/2014/09/barrett-ward-of-fashionable-helps-ethiopian-women.html , title=Entrepreneur's business gives Ethiopian women opportunities to rise from poverty , publisher=The Business journals , date=8 Sep 2014 , access-date=7 March 2016 , author=Andrea Tortora {{cite web , url=http://archesnews.com/sustainable-fashion-empowers-ethiopian-women-sales-of-scarves-leather-products-create-jobs-transform-lives/ , title=Sustainable fashion empowers Ethiopian women: Sales of scarves, leather products create jobs, transform lives , publisher=Arches News , date=February 26, 2014 , access-date=7 March 2016 , author=Shannon Molter {{cite web , url=http://www.littlepicklepress.com/the-story-behind-the-story-ian-bentley-and-fashionable-2/ , title=The Story Behind the Story: Ian Bentley and FashionABLE , publisher=Little Pickle Press , date=11 December 2013 , access-date=7 March 2016 , author=Kelly Wickham {{cite web , url=http://hauteliving.com/2015/04/minka-kelly/562488/ , title=ON PHILANTHROPY: 5 Questions with Minka Kelly , publisher=

Haute Living ''Haute Living'' is a luxury lifestyle magazine founded in 2004. It is based in Miami, Florida, and as of 2015 is chaired by Robert Farmer. The executive publishers of the magazine are Kamal Hotchandani, CEO, and Seth Semilof, COO. The magazin ...

, date=10 April 2015 , access-date=9 March 2016 {{cite web , url=http://www.tennessean.com/story/money/2014/10/28/barrett-ward-fashionable-ethiopia-mocha-club/18073093/ , title=Nashville's Barrett Ward wins GQ Award , publisher=

The Tennessean ''The Tennessean'' (known until 1972 as ''The Nashville Tennessean'') is a daily newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee. Its circulation area covers 39 counties in Middle Tennessee and eight counties in southern Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett, w ...

, date=28 October 2014 , access-date=7 March 2016 , author=Jamie McGee {{cite web , url=http://upstart.bizjournals.com/entrepreneurs/hot-shots/2014/10/22/barrett-ward-fashionable-mocha-club-nashville.html?page=all , title=A fashionABLE fellow: Social entrepreneur gets GQ honor for empowering African women (Video) , publisher=

Bizjournals American City Business Journals, Inc. (ACBJ) is an American newspaper publisher based in Charlotte, North Carolina. ACBJ publishes ''The Business Journals'', which contains local business news for 44 markets in the United States with each market ...

, date=22 October 2014 , access-date=7 March 2016 , author=Jade Nunes

External links

Official website
Companies based in Tennessee