Empowerment Plan
Empowerment Plan is a Detroit-based 501c3 nonprofit that employs individuals experiencing homelessness to manufacture EMPWR coats — coats that convert into sleeping bags — and distributes them free of charge to people in need.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersDetroit, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Empowerment Plan does
Empowerment Plan is a Detroit-based 501c3 nonprofit organization (Tax ID 45-3265365) founded in 2012 by Veronika Scott, originally as a college class project. The organization's core activity is the manufacture of a single proprietary product — the EMPWR Coat, a durable coat that converts into a sleeping bag — produced by employees drawn from Detroit-area homeless shelters under a 2-year intensive employment model that pairs full-time paid work with job-readiness training and supportive services addressing housing, childcare, transportation, and education. The organization reports that 100% of its employees have moved out of shelter housing within the first 90 days of employment. All coats are distributed free of charge to individuals in need rather than sold commercially.
The organization's products and underlying operations are straightforward and physical: a manufactured garment produced by a small in-house production team (supervised by a Production Supervisor and a Training & Quality Supervisor) at its headquarters and manufacturing facility at 7640 Kercheval Avenue, Detroit. Distribution occurs through charitable partnerships — most prominently the Pope Francis Center and the City of Detroit Office of Cannabis Affairs — rather than through retail or wholesale channels. The organization's earned-media footprint (Good Morning America, CNN, New York Times, NPR, Oprah, Forbes, PBS NewsHour) is a core intangible asset that supports its fundraising.
Revenue mechanics are philanthropic: in 2024 Empowerment Plan reported $2.15 million in grant funding, complemented by a small branded-merchandise shop selling apparel ("swag") with a 10% newsletter-subscriber discount code (EP10). Distribution partnerships (e.g., the 2024 holiday-season collaboration with the City of Detroit's Office of Cannabis Affairs and local dispensaries, which raised roughly $16,000 and placed 107 coats in Detroit) function as both fundraising and product-distribution channels. The customer base is structurally split: end beneficiaries are individuals experiencing homelessness (free of charge), while "paying" counterparts are institutional donors, grantmakers (including an early-stage investment from the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation in 2015), and corporate partners.
Empowerment Plan firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Empowerment Plan
- Legal name
- Empowerment Plan
- Website
- https://empowermentplan.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Empowerment Plan is a Detroit-based 501c3 nonprofit that employs individuals experiencing homelessness to manufacture EMPWR coats — coats that convert into sleeping bags — and distributes them free of charge to people in need.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Empowerment Plan industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Social Services - Workforce Development for Homeless Populations
- NAICS
- Vocational Rehabilitation Services (6243), Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Workforce Development & Inclusive Employment (Job Training, Placement) (BPAGALAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Homelessness Prevention, Shelter & Supportive Housing Services (BPAIANAC)
Keywords
Where Empowerment Plan is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Detroit
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Empowerment Plan business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Donations and Charitable Giving: The organization operates primarily through donations and charitable contributions rather than product sales. The EMPWR coats are distributed to those in need rather than sold commercially.
- Merchandise Sales: EP sells branded merchandise (swag) through their shop, with a newsletter subscription offering a 10% discount code (EP10) for purchases.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | — | Donation-based distribution model |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Empowerment Plan product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Empowerment Plan is a 501c3 nonprofit that hires parents experiencing homelessness in Detroit to manufacture sleeping bag coats (the EMPWR Coat), which are then distributed at no cost to individuals in need. Production serves as the vehicle for a 2-year intensive employment program that pairs full-time work with job readiness training and wraparound supportive services (housing, childcare, transportation, and education). The organization additionally sells branded merchandise and accepts donations and grants to fund its mission.
Product overview
Empowerment Plan is a workforce development nonprofit organization that manufactures a single core product: the EMPWR Coat (The Coat). This sleeping bag coat is produced by employees who are individuals experiencing homelessness, as part of a 2-year employment program that provides job readiness training and supportive services including housing, childcare, transportation, and education assistance. The manufacturing operation serves dual purposes: providing employment and stability for workers while producing outerwear for distribution to those in need.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- EMPWR Coat (Sleeping Bag Coat) The EMPWR Coat is a durable, innovative outerwear coat that transforms into a sleeping bag. It is manufactured at Empowerment Plan's Detroit facility by program participants - individuals experiencing homelessness employed through the organization's 2-year workforce development program - and is distributed at no cost to individuals in need through charitable partnerships with shelters and city programs such as the Pope Francis Center and the City of Detroit Office of Cannabis Affairs.
- 2-Year Workforce Development Employment Program Empowerment Plan's 2-year intensive employment program provides full-time paid employment manufacturing EMPWR Coats to parents recruited from homeless shelters across Detroit, paired with job readiness training and wraparound supportive services including housing assistance, childcare, transportation, and education support. Per program outcomes, 100% of participants transition out of shelter within their first 90 days. The program is the central service offering of the nonprofit, with coat manufacturing serving as the productive activity that funds and structures the employment relationship.
- EP Branded Merchandise Shop The merchandise shop sells branded EP swag and apparel through the Empowerment Plan website, providing a small commercial revenue stream that complements the organization's primary donation and grant funding. Subscribing to the organization's email newsletter yields a 10% discount code (EP10) for merchandise purchases.
Companies that use Empowerment Plan
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Empowerment Plan technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Empowerment Plan partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- City of Detroit, Office of Cannabis AffairsnotablePartnership with Detroit's Office of Cannabis Affairs and local dispensaries raised nearly $16,000 during the 2024 holiday season, providing 107 coats to the city of Detroit. The OCA distributed many coats to the Pope Francis Center.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Empowerment Plan competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Chrysalis: Los Angeles-based nonprofit that provides jobs, job training, and supportive services to people experiencing homelessness. Operates the most direct comparable employment-first model to Empowerment Plan, though with a broader mix of services (not manufacturing-focused).
- HomeFree: Coat-focused social enterprise with a one-for-one giving model that distributes coats to people in need. Highly comparable product category (coats) and charitable distribution model, though HomeFree sells coats commercially rather than employing homeless workers.
Broad incumbents
- Goodwill Industries International: Large-scale nonprofit workforce development and social enterprise operator. Overlaps with Empowerment Plan on the job-readiness and employment-for-marginalized-populations mission, but operates across retail, staffing, and reuse industries at vastly greater scale.
- TOMS: Mission-driven apparel brand historically built on a one-for-one giving model. Comparable as a social-mission apparel company, though TOMS operates commercially at scale rather than employing the beneficiary population to manufacture its products.
- Cotopaxi: Outdoor and apparel brand with a stated mission to alleviate poverty through grantmaking and the 'Questival' impact program. Comparable as a mission-driven apparel brand; differs in that Cotopaxi sells commercially and supports poverty alleviation through external grants rather than direct employment of beneficiaries.
- Patagonia: Mission-driven outdoor apparel company with deep environmental and social commitments. Comparable as an apparel company with a strong social/environmental mission that informs both products and employment practices, though vastly larger and commercially driven.
Emerging players
- DownTown Volunteers: Smaller regional nonprofit distributing coats and warm-weather gear to homeless populations. Comparable product/mission overlap with Empowerment Plan's coat-distribution arm, though lacks the workforce-development employment component.
- Dress for Success: Global nonprofit that supports women's economic empowerment through professional attire, job readiness, and employment programs. Comparable on the workforce-development-for-vulnerable-populations axis and apparel-product distribution, though not manufacturing-based.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Empowerment Plan social profiles
Digital presenceEmpowerment Plan financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Empowerment Plan leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Empowerment Plan funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Empowerment Plan M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Empowerment Plan
What does Empowerment Plan do?
Empowerment Plan is a 501c3 nonprofit that hires parents experiencing homelessness in Detroit to manufacture sleeping bag coats (the EMPWR Coat), which are then distributed at no cost to individuals in need. Production serves as the vehicle for a 2-year intensive employment program that pairs full-time work with job readiness training and wraparound supportive services (housing, childcare, transportation, and education). The organization additionally sells branded merchandise and accepts donations and grants to fund its mission.
Is Empowerment Plan a public or private company?
Empowerment Plan is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Empowerment Plan founded?
Empowerment Plan was founded in 2012. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Empowerment Plan based?
Empowerment Plan is headquartered in Detroit, United States, in the North America region.
How does Empowerment Plan make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Donations and Charitable Giving is the primary driver. The others are merchandise Sales.
Who are Empowerment Plan's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Chrysalis and HomeFree. Broad incumbents are Goodwill Industries International, TOMS, Cotopaxi and Patagonia. Emerging players are DownTown Volunteers and Dress for Success.
Does Empowerment Plan have an API?
No public API is recorded for Empowerment Plan.
What industry is Empowerment Plan in?
Empowerment Plan's product category is Social Services - Workforce Development for Homeless Populations. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGALAB, Workforce Development & Inclusive Employment (Job Training, Placement), with a secondary code of BPAIANAC, Homelessness Prevention, Shelter & Supportive Housing Services. Its NAICS code is 6243 and its SIC code is 8300.