NEW BRITAIN -- Inside the Hospital for Special Care in New Britain, a new gift shop awaits customers.
Behind the counter stands Andy Jortner, an assistant store manager at Good Cause Gifts.
“I use the computer,” but that’s not all Andy does. During his four to six hour shifts, he has a hand in different parts of the store.
“I stock cards, I sweep the floor, stock candy, and also, I do the shelves,” he said.
Andy is just one of the intellectually disabled employees who work at Good Cause Gifts. He says he likes his job and the minimum wage it pays, which is a higher wage than many other jobs for people with disabilities.
“They do typical retail work. They’re pricing items. They’re helping to display items. They’re behind the cash register. Some of the individuals who have an interest will work with the store manager and working with vendors to select items for sale in the store. So it’s the full range,” said Pam Donaroma, Executive Director of Futures, which runs the gift shop.
Since Good Cause Gifts opened in the summer, it’s seen good feedback from those working here and the customers. Business has been good, which is important, because the money made at the store goes into employing more people with disabilities.
“It’s important to us as a social enterprise to be successful, and I think we take a very strong business approach, so we’re looking at offering a range of merchandise that will appeal to everyone. We have very aggressive sales strategies, so in addition to having the store operate, we’re always looking for opportunities to have vendor shows, to partner with other non-profits,” said Donaroma.
The partnership with the Hospital for Special Care is especially strong. In fact, the reason Good Cause Gifts was brought into the hospital in the first place was because of its close fit to the values of HSC.
“We have a shared mission of creating opportunities for employment and inclusion for individuals with all sorts of disabilities, and their fit in the creativity of their business model really was unparalleled,” said Wendy DeAngelo, VP of Development and Communications for Hospital for Special Care.
The Hospital for Special Care says the range of products at the shop also pair with the hospital’s continuum of care. There are gifts for all steps of life from baby gifts to wedding gifts.