Lifestyle store coming to SLO helps African women overcome prostitution, poverty
Ian Bentley witnessed firsthand the economic disparity and vulnerability many people face when he first went to Ethiopia to adopt his daughter eight years ago — especially the many women who work in prostitution to earn money for their families.
That inspired him to start a business, Parker Clay, employing Ethiopians to hand craft leather bags, totes, wallets, backpacks, bracelets and other lifestyle products — offering those who work there a better life.
The business, which he started with his wife, Brittany, sells mostly online and additionally at a retail store in Santa Barbara, his hometown.
The business now has more than 100 Ethiopian employees who produce the crafts imported to California.
A second Parker Clay shop now is coming to the SLO Public Market this fall, opening in an approximately 1,000-square-foot space at the incoming complex near the intersection of Tank Farm Road and South Higuera Street, where a host of other businesses also have signed on such as Orangetheory Fitness and Figueroa Mountain Brewing Company.
“This is the most rewarding work I’ve ever done in my life, and I hope do it the rest of my life,” said Bentley, 35, who previously worked in real estate development.
Bentley said the goal is for the SLO store to open “right after Thanksgiving.”
The SLO Public Market doesn’t have a set timeline, as it awaits city tenant permits, and the first stores in the business center are set to go in in around November and December, according to Shala Schultz, the market’s senior operations manager.
Parker Clay strives for fair trade, equitable compensation
Many of the women who work for Parker Clay — named after the Bentleys’ two sons — have moved on from the sex industry through the help of an African-based nonprofit, Ellitla, specializing in helping women escape prostitution.
After the adoption of his first child from Ethiopia (he and his wife now have two adopted daughters from the country), Bentley and his family returned a year later to live there. While in Africa, he bought a leather bag from a vendor for Brittany’s birthday.
He was amazed at the high quality of the product, he said.
Bentley learned from the salesman that the leather is exported to Italy and other European countries, where top-of-the-line merchandise is produced.
That led to his business venture in which Bentley began working with Ethiopians to produce “ethically made” merchandise for sale, offering wages that are double and triple the average.
Compensation also includes “vacation time, pension plans, transportation to and from work, access to laundry facilities, daily team coffee breaks and more,” according to a store press release.
Human trafficking and prostitution common in Ethiopia, business owner says
Bentley said some girls as young as 8 are forced into prostitution, and human trafficking is common there, too.
“There are an estimated 150,000 women working in prostitution in Ethiopia’s capital city of Addis Ababa,” Bentley said. “When we were there, we knew indifference to help wasn’t an option, but we felt helpless... When I came upon a beautiful bag shopping for my wife’s birthday, I never would have imagined that a birthday gift was about to change my life and future.”
At the same time, the country has a growing economy and one of the largest livestock populations in the world, providing a resource for factory work in leather.
Bentley has since worked to spread word on the business and the situation in Ethiopia, giving a Ted Talk that describes his family’s story. The business’ website also has “virtual reality journey” clips that contain stories on the workers and life in Ethiopia.
“Our employees are hard workers and incredibly talented,” Bentley said. “They work hard, learn and grow. The potential is there for everyone to thrive. The quality of the product is on par with the top names in the market.”
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