A plain-looking building in Hopewell Junction, NY hides something very special within its walls.
The front door of a plain-looking building opens into the Unshattered boutique. A sign that greets you reads, “I’m an Ambassador of Possibility.” With that statement, you know you’re entering a special place. Bags and pouches of rich colors, distinctive materials, and unique texture combinations surround you. There is a lot to look at in the boutique, but the atmosphere of the space is calming and comfortable. It’s easy to want to sit and relax. There’s even a comfortable chair where you can take in the vibe of Unshattered. Beyond the boutique is the cutting workstation, surrounded by shelves of colorful rolls of material. Looking a little further down the space, you see sewing stations.
The cutting room has a wide range of donated materials to create the bags and other carry items.
Entering the Unshattered boutique begins a very deep journey. As with all brands and companies, a well-crafted experience can bring people joy, excitement, and relief. It can also solidify connections to a brand’s message. Experiences can also pave the path to opportunities. Unshattered offers all these experiences in a triple bottom line business model. This means the organization is good for people, the planet, and business (“profit” is usually placed here; however, in Unshattered’s case, it’s not about the profit).
Unshattered is a nonprofit social enterprise located in Hopewell Junction, NY, about 70 miles north of Manhattan. They make luxury soft goods from upcycled materials. What makes Unshattered unique isn’t just the one-of-a-kind bags or the fact that 100% of every dollar spent or donated goes to help women end the addiction-relapse cycle. Unshattered is a business platform that gives women who have struggled with addiction an opportunity to create a new path in life.
Kelly Lyndgaard founded Unshattered in 2014 (they became a 501c3 in 2016) to help women rebuild lives shattered by drugs and alcohol. Her vision was born of an understanding of the challenges women face in sustaining sobriety after completing residential treatment programs. It wasn’t because they didn't try to stay sober, but that returning to the same unsupportive communities and lives they came from before rehab made it tough. Additionally, the women often lacked the education and job skills to help them move forward. Through these shortcomings in the system, the women would relapse into addiction. Lyndgaard’s goal with Unshattered is to help women succeed with sobriety by offering them opportunities to make good life decisions and thrive. In addition to providing employment, Unshattered helps women find housing, transportation, and, most importantly, a safe and supportive community.
Pouches made from a 1955 Mercedes-Benz Interior.
Every pouch and bag that is created at Unshattered is uniquely different from each other.
The Unshattered x Southwest® "Possibilities Take Flight" Collection is an expansive collection that ranges from pouches, dopp kits, a messenger, a duffle, and a tote.
Creating a Purpose Through Bags
Unshattered offers handbags, makeup and toiletry pouches, totes, backpacks, messenger bags, wallets, wristlets, and keychains. Meticulously crafted using beautiful combinations of colors and luxurious textures, each piece is sophisticated and unique. The team at Unshattered works closely with the Fashion Program at Marist College to design and update their product lines. Every bag is created using donated materials, including hospitality interiors, Broadway show backdrops, military uniforms, event banners, and even Southwest Airlines seat covers.
Every Unshattered bag has three hidden messages inside each bag.
Every bag has three secrets built into it, making it a physical extension of the maker and the values of Unshattered.
Secret One: A message from the maker to the future owner, written within the lining of each bag. This note could be a poem, words of encouragement, or a tally of the maker’s days of sobriety. The message is hidden and remains part of the bag for its life.
Secret Two: A card that names someone who is struggling with addiction. This card allows the owner to carry their bag in honor of the women who continue to need help and support.
Secret Three: A gold seam sewn into each bag. This represents Kintsugi, the Japanese technique of repairing broken pottery with gold lacquer. Kintsugi reflects the idea that flaws and imperfections can be embraced and that repairs create something more beautiful and resilient. Through this gold stitching, the bag becomes a metaphor for the lives of the women who make them.
A Platform for the Possibilities of Life
For Lyndgaard, Unshattered represents the “possibilities of life and the opportunities that are granted when you surround yourself with people who are doing amazing things.” When a community supports you, it raises the bar for you and makes everything possible. Lyndgaard shared a story about how the top stitch of the bags gave them a lot of trouble early on. The makers would work on a bag and then hand it off to an expert to finish the top stitch. They scraped a lot of bags because they couldn’t get it just right. However, everyone at Unshattered learns how to do a top stitch over time. “This shows that when you are around people that prove that something is possible, you just do it; you believe that it’s possible because everyone else can do it. So why can’t you?” This community shows women they can thrive on the other side of addiction. Through the six and a half years since Unshattered became a 501c3 and they began to employ women in recovery, there has only been one employee relapse.
It’s everyone’s understanding at Unshattered that learning is crucial to creating a path to a new life, and this is how the business was built. Over time, Unshattered has built a product photography studio and created systems to track the complicated life cycle of constructing luxury soft goods. This includes design, sewing, manufacturing, operational processes, production tracking, inventory, and marketing. The team members are involved in all aspects of the business. These new skills are largely self-taught by the Unshattered team.
Growth Plans
Lyndgaard has plans to expand the business platform even further. Unshattered has recently moved to a larger space, allowing it to expand its bag and accessory lines. The larger space will also help create new opportunities for more women. Inspired by people’s comfort in the original boutique, Lyndgaard has decided to add a café or a coffee shop. This will create an opportunity for women to learn and practice hospitality skills as another outlet. To help fund the expansion, they have launched a new line – the Unshattered Investment Collection. This specialty line is available to those who wish to donate to help renovate their new space. Additionally, Unshattered has added a couture-level bag to their line-up. The Atelier bag was designed through a collaboration between Unshattered, the Marist College Fashion program director, the former Design Director for Henri Bendel, and the former Vice President of Design for the Ralph Lauren Handbags Division. As with all the Unshattered bags, the Atelier bag is made with upcycled materials.
Although Lyndgaard says that Unshattered isn’t about the bags, the quality and the message of the bags are at the heart of the boutique’s success. “When you have an Unshattered bag, you carry something that matters; you’re making a difference for women and the planet. Unshattered is wrapped around a journey of recovery of a particular set of underserved and under-resourced women.” Lyndgaard adds, “That journey towards wholeness is for all of us. Carrying our bags is a reminder about our own life’s possibilities and an investment in creating possibilities for these women.” The expansion will give the women of Unshattered more learning opportunities, which will ultimately lead to more life possibilities. Unshattered may have started with bags, but the triple bottom line platform will continue to give women a chance to maintain their sobriety and for their lives to thrive.
Head over to Unshattered to see their full catalog and to learn more about their mission and work.
The Investment Collection is for those who want to support and invest in the purchase and renovation of the new Unshattered facility.
The Atelier bag is a couture-level bag new to the Unshattered collection.
The boutique is a comfortable room where people sit in the chair to take in the rich vibe of Unshattered.
Unshattered focuses on the endless possibilities that exist for the women when they are able to end the relapse cycle.