Nova Employment's aim to find 100 jobs in 100 days moved a couple of steps closer last week when Uplift Fair Trade, a new store in Katoomba, opened.
The two staff that owner Anna Cohnt has employed both came via Nova, which focuses on finding jobs for people with disabilities.
Marie Martin, from Glenbrook, has been unemployed for a long time so was delighted to take up her role at Uplift. And she has been pleased at the reaction the new shop has received.
"It's been very interesting, the vitality of the people of Katoomba who come in," she said. "And some of them come just for a chat!"
On a personal level, Ms Martin said having a job again felt very satisfying.
Ms Cohnt said she was approached by Nova's employment consultant, Lorraine Harvey, to see if she needed employees. She thought working with the company to find staff the perfect fit for her business.
"She told me about what Nova does and I said, that's just what we do in India!"
Ms Harvey helped Ms Cohnt with the necessary paperwork and accompanied Ms Martin and fellow employee Jane Halir on their first shifts at Uplift.
"It helped having Lorraine with them as a support person for their first sessions," Ms Cohnt said. "She just went beyond the call of duty."
And her two new staff have fitted in quickly.
"They've picked up everything really fast," Ms Cohnt said. "They've been excellent - I thought it would take a lot longer but it's going really well."
Ms Cohnt, born and bred in Warrimoo, started Uplift Fair Trade about six years ago, after working for World Vision and seeing first-hand the plight of many of the poorest in India and Nepal.
"I recognised that there are people overseas who need help earning a sustainable income," she said.
She also used to give talks about shopping ethically to church groups, whose members complained they didn't know where to source such goods.
She put two and two together and set up Uplift Fair Trade. She has been running a mobile shop to sell her merchandise but this is the first time she has set up on a permanent site.
The shop is filled with hand-made clothes, toys, jewellery, homewares, cards, even Christmas decorations, each of which comes with a tag that tells the story of its source - a former leprosy colony, the spinal rehabilitation group, women rescued from the sex trade.
She also stocks goods from Africa and East Timor, through the Western Sydney Fair Trade Network. The shop is open seven days a week, 10am-5pm.
The new store is located in the Katoomba Civic Centre arcade [under the old library building] on Katoomba Street.
