A Bag is a Bridge

Li-An Ye November 1st, 2025,

On the sixth floor of the Wharton Business School at San Francisco, in the heart of the city, two large projectors hung from the ceiling, with the Bay Bridge and a blue ocean outside the windows—an inspiring backdrop for our first public appearance.

On October 25, 2025, Futuris held its first public, in-person event. We were invited as guest speakers at the Wharton Business School at San Francisco for a live social entrepreneurship workshop. Our goal was to support the girls in the Dominican Republic by helping them sell the bags they make to a much larger US market and by spreading awareness of their situation. During the event, we sold 11 bags in 20 minutes and raised $1,000—every dollar went directly to the girls in the sewing program we have partnered with.

Several people from the audience came back to thank us for the event and for what we do. One person told us, “Thank you for doing this for the girls in the Dominican Republic, and for coming here to share their story with us.” Another buyer put the bag on right away and smiled, “This is perfect for the upcoming holiday!”

We featured 20 handmade bags brought from the Dominican Republic and gave a presentation about Futuris’ mission, the progress we’ve made, and how this work is a practice of social entrepreneurship. We also shared a short greeting video from Mike Williams, cheering us on and encouraging the audience to support the girls’ craft and education.

For those new to our non-profit, we are Futuris—a team of three girls from California with the hope and passion to build a future for a group of girls in the DR through social entrepreneurship instead of handouts. We are focused on taking a sewing program started by another non-profit to the next level, maximizing sales sustainably, and giving the girls more control over their own futures.

The underlying problem Futuris is working to solve is the unsustainability of the marketing and sales the sewing program had before. The program had only monthly access to a limited market in the US and little to no online presence. Previously, one person flew between the DR and the US to sell the bags. While this provided income, it was not sustainable—and it’s risky to rely on a monthly trip.

Many of the girls in the sewing program play a huge role in keeping their families afloat through the money they make with the bags they sew. Half of their income goes to immediate needs (food and other necessities), and the other half is saved in a bank account for their education. They are grateful for any education—whether it’s learning English from the Bible or attending any school available. Futuris can connect them with the larger US market that has demand for unique handmade bags, increasing their earnings and giving them more hope of going to college and having a life they can control—a future that isn’t reliant on a shaky government or donations.

As our first public appearance, the event was an overall success, generating about $1,000 in the span of a lunch break. The sling bags, beach bags, backpacks, and Hero bags all received extensive praise for their artful designs and style. Most importantly, this is a gleam of hope for the girls in the DR that Futuris can turn their bags into a bridge to better futures.