Entrepreneur

Gerard takes a few minutes to take a breath. The temperature in the shack can reach 100 degrees.

Gerard Louis-Jean is a Haitian entrepreneur. He has made his living recycling aluminum from the area slums, for the past 21 years. Every morning he opens his shop in La Saline, a slum in Port-au-Prince.

Stripped down to a pair of shorts to stay cool inside the tin shack, Gerard “prepares” the dirt that he uses for his molds. It’s back breaking work,” he says.

“In a good day we can make about 15 pots, not counting the ones with imperfections,” Gerard says. That would bring about 15 Haitian dollars. The equivalent of $ 5 US currency.

Gerard is proud that his family has not had to beg or steal. Thanks to his craft he has put several of his children through school. “We do all the work ourselves, for ourselves,” he said.

“There are kids that roam the slums without anything to do,” says Gerard. “I give them work and teach them the craft.”

La Saline is a very small community where everyone knows everyone, and they look out for each other. “If I need money for food, I can find work here,” says a day laborer.

Gerard gives work to neighboring kids from time-to-time. “I don’t think the work is too hard for them to do,” he said. “It teaches them work ethics.”

Gerard can only afford to employ a few people that are willing to work for a few wages. The few that show up are very hard workers.

Careful attention to detail is important in order to prevent waste. The imperfect pans are broken and melted again. “Nothing goes to waste here,” said Gerard.

Pots manufactured the previous day are taken to the marketplace in Port-au-Prince to be sold. Some are sold door-to-door.

Members of his family stop by often to say hello. Gerard Louis-Jean works in his shop religiously without missing a single day of the week. “I hope to expand, and maybe move my shop to a better place,” he said. “It’s hard work…but there’s nothing I’d rather be doing.”