Roundup: Adidas, Grameen ink MoU to make shoes in Bangladesh for world's poor by Nian Yifeng, Naim-Ul-Karim
DHAKA, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- German sporting goods giant Adidas has inked a Memorandum of Understanding with the Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus' Grameen to make low-cost shoes next year in Bangladesh for poor and barefoot of the world.
Yunus, who was awarded the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his development of micro-credits that benefit poor people, told Xinhua Wednesday, "Grameen and Adidas have agreed to create a social business to produce affordable shoes for the poor in Bangladesh, to decrease the incidence of hookworm and other parasitic illnesses in Bangladesh."
ed hardy wholesale"The two sides have already signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) and are now working together on the next steps. The idea behind the project is that no person anywhere in the world should go without shoes," he also said in a prepared statement to Xinhua Wednesday.
Lamiya Morshed, Executive Director of Yunus Center, the hub of the Noble laurate's global activities around social businesses including micro-credits, said German shoemaker came forward with the project in line with the Nobel laureate's "Social Business" concept.
In a social business, the investors/owners can gradually recoup the money invested, but cannot take any dividend beyond that point. Purpose of such investment is purely to achieve one or more social objectives through the operation of the company, no personal gain is desired by the investors.
The companies (under social business) must cover all costs and make profit, at the same time achieve the social objectives like healthcare, housing, financial services for poor in a business way.
Omega Fake"Social business is a non-loss, non-dividend company with a social objective. No profits will be distributed to investors, beyond recovery of the investment capital," the Yunus Centre's statement said Wednesday.
Yunus has reportedly inspired Adidas, often reportedly accused of exploiting workers in its factories in developing countries, that it can make non-profit low-cost shoes establishing new factories, which will also create job opportunities to poor people.
France's Danone and Veolia, German's BASF SE, and Intel of U.S. A., among others, have already launched separate joint social business ventures with Yunus' Grameen for severing poor people.
For the companies investing, according to the Yunus Center, whether Danone, Veolia, BASF SE, Adidas or Intel, this social business has no effect on their company sales. As the social business company is not a part of the investing company, it will not affect their profits, it said.
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There is so far no concrete decision on pricing of the Adidas shoes, a senior official of the Yunus center said on condition of anonymity, adding Adidas is in contact of Grameen for making the low- cost shoes, which are to be first manufactured in Bangladesh next year, for poor.
"The price of the shoe is not finalized. Only MOU has been signed to say that Grameen and Adidas will work together," the Yunus Center said Wednesday.
"So far we understand that the shoes will not be sold at more than the cost of materials and manufacture," said the official who preferred to be unnamed, adding there is a lot of things, including whether or not Adidas' three-stripes label will be on the shoe
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