Wilcannia Marketplace – Hair Salon
Partner | CatholicCare Wilcannia Forbes
Location | Wilcannia, Australia
Overview
The ‘Wilcannia Marketplace’ project builds on the successful CatholicCare social enterprise initiative, the ‘Cooee for Coffee’ coffee shop, creating employment opportunities whilst filling service gaps in the remote community of Wilcannia in New South Wales.
The focus of this MWIA-supported project is to establish a hair salon as part of a marketplace hub in the centre of town, providing a safe public area for the community to meet and connect.
Challenges
First Nation’s communities feel a deep connection to country; therefore, leaving to find employment in other areas is not an option. As such, the hair salon project targets First Nation’s women aged 15+ by creating job opportunities within the Wilcannia community.
Focus on upskilling to increase employability is prominent in regional communities, but employment opportunities are scarce, with limited small businesses available to provide much-needed jobs. The hair salon project and its surrounding marketplace brings financial independence to many First Nation’s women and has a positive ripple effect through their immediate families and the broader community.
Impact
This project specifically aims to:
- Improve employment opportunities for First Nation’s women.
- Increase financial independence for First Nation’s women.
- Promote community connectedness and informal networks of support.
- Address a service gap in the remote township of Wilcannia.
Activities
The hair salon has been successfully registered under the name ‘Cooee for Cuts’ and a fully qualified hairdresser has been employed.
Participants have the opportunity to put learned hairdressing skills into practice through work experience, work placement, and casual and permanent employment at the ‘Cooee for Cuts’ hair salon. There are already six women who have completed a Certificate III in Hairdressing and are keen for an opportunity to put their skills to use.
