A Decade of Data Confirms:

Healing-Centered Recovery Works

Unshattered releases its first longitudinal impact study!
10+ years of evidence validating that meaningful employment, community, and personalized support produce durable sobriety, economic independence, and lifelong transformation.
template--18520543428669__image_with_text_zAMYFG

Since 2016, Unshattered has employed women in recovery to make premium upcycled handbags.
But the bags were never the point.

Through its two-year Business of You program, Unshattered addresses the "Day 366 problem"
the critical gap after residential recovery ends,
when women return to communities where relapse risk is highest.

Project Impact, our first formal 10-year evaluation, uses qualitative interviews and anonymous surveys
to move beyond anecdote and into evidence.



The results are unambiguous: this model works, and it lasts.

Key Findings

  • Finding 01

    The Healing-Centered
    Approach Works

    Women shift from white-knuckling sobriety to building lives they are eager to show up for. Sobriety becomes a foundation, not a daily obsession.

  • Finding 02

    The Unshattered Leadership Method Is Scalable

    A proprietary framework, accurate reflection, intentional nudge, deliberate walk-away dismantles dependency and builds independent agency. It is replicable beyond the founder.

  • Finding 03

    Confidence Is Built
    Through Doing

    Participants move from relying on external validation to trusting their own capability; driven by real work, real mistakes, and real accountability.

  • Finding 04

    The Product Is a Conduit,
    Not the Outcome

    The act of making — learning, unraveling mistakes, rebuilding — is therapeutic. The studio is a classroom operating as a workplace.

  • Finding 05

    Community and Belonging
    Are Non-Negotiable

    Unshattered fills a gap in care many women have never experienced; unconditional acceptance and belief in their potential create the safety required for transformation.

  • Finding 06

    Belonging Looks Different
    Than Expected

    The findings suggest that healthy boundaries, trusted relationships, and strong social capital may be more important than broad community integration.

  • Finding 07

    Confidence Lags
    Behind Capability

    Many participants struggle to envision success beyond Unshattered, despite developing strong skills. Visible pathways and alumni examples help build belief in what comes next.

  • Finding 08

    Graduates Are
    Stable and Sober

    At the time of this report, every individual who completed the full Business of You program is sober, employed, and living independently.

  • Finding 09

    Unshattered Serves
    As a Bridge

    Unshattered is a transitional space where women learn to take ownership of their lives. Participants learn to trust themselves through responsibility, self-advocacy, and growth in a safe environment.

"I don't even think about sobriety anymore. It's funny, something I was obsessed with for so many years is not even a thought. But actively showing up for my life is how I do that. And that did start with Unshattered."

— BUSINESS OF YOU GRADUATE

  • About The Study

    Mixed-methods design: 16 qualitative in-depth interviews + anonymous surveys across all 33 current and former Business of You participants. Conducted by board members and program staff using modified thematic analysis

  • What's Next

    Unshattered is formalizing its Leadership Method for training and scale, building employer partnerships for alumni career pathways, and seeking funders who believe it's worth investing in durable outcomes.

Project Impact

Read the full report below.

 

Link to PDF Version of our Project Impact Findings Report