We are
staffing Atlanta companies with the talented refugee workforce and hearing incredible stories of impact through business owners across the city. We’re excited to share some of those stories here on the blog. However, before diving into Atlanta recruiting successes, we thought it would be best to share about the very first company we encountered intentionally hiring refugees. We met Steve & Ethan of Urban Mattress Company while living in Denver, Colorado. They are making a huge impact in what most people would describe as a sleazy industry. One of the many ways they are redefining the mattress business is by hiring refugees.
Steve shared the following thoughts with us about employing refugees:
Why would a mattress store get in bed/partnering with refugees? The early DNA of Urban Mattress in Denver when we started the business was to find ways that our small world of selling soft rectangles would impact our community. When we moved to Denver it was brought to our attention the large refugee community that moves here every month. Immediately we reached out to ACC (African Community Center) to see if there were ways we could partner. Only 5 months after we opened our doors, Jennifer, the director, introduced us to Kutaiba, a fluent English Speaking Iraqi from Baghdad. He brought along a young guy named Omar. We trained them and they have been with us ever since.
These two guys are like family. We came alongside Kutaiba in the hospital to pray and bring gifts for his family when their son was going through a serious surgery. We labored hard to figure out how to bring his brother from the middle east who was struggling with cancer. Once his brother was here in the US we mourned with Kutaiba when he lost his battle with Cancer. We quizzed and even struggled with Kutaiba and Omar when they were studying for their US citizenship. We celebrated with them last year when they both became citizens. We rejoiced when Kutaiba made enough money to buy a house in Denver for his family. We learn from their culture and religion. We laugh, we fight, we grow together to make Urban Mattress a place where lives can find rest, sleep and transformation.
They are Urban Mattress. I couldn’t imagine a company with out Kutaiba and Omar. They are awesome.
