Company rented 'secret apartment' to shelter women escaping abuse: 'This is lifechanging'

The Digital Picnic, a Melbourne-based marketing agency that goes by @thedigitalpicnic on Instagram, embarked on a confidential mission to help survivors of domestic abuse. They basically started leasing a "secret apartment" to donate it to a not-for-profit organization (NFP), which in turn used it to shelter women and "gender-diverse folks" escaping abusive relationships. On July 9, 2025, the founder, Cherie Clonan, shared a heartfelt video detailing how their tiny initiative had grown over time, attracting global companies to contribute to the noble mission.

The company had first disclosed its shadow mission through a post on LinkedIn. As their post continued to gain traction, three global corporations reached out to Clonan, stepping forward to donate 91 apartments to the same NFP. "And still to this day, women approach me — at the pub, the park, the supermarket — and say, 'Are you Cherie? I was one of the women re-accommodated in those 91 apartments.' Every time, I cry," Clonan said. Having spent the first five years of her life in a house marked by domestic abuse, she knew she had to show up for people who go through a similar experience. "I’m not a big corporation. We don’t have 'big agency' profit margins, but we do have heart, and when we can, we act," Clonan added.

While she poured her heart out in the beautiful post, the founder shared glimpses of a survivor moving into their secret apartment after escaping a traumatic relationship. The woman whose identity had been kept private, owing to security reasons, broke down as she finally felt safe after going through what was documented in a 30+ page police report. With all the trauma healing, the survivor is now all set to enroll in law school. In most cases, victims tend to stay longer with an abusive partner, essentially because they have nowhere else to go.

In fact, shocking data by SAFE, a domestic abuse treatment center in Austin, reveals that 38% of all domestic violence victims become homeless at some point in their lives. Now, imagine if more companies stepped up to help these helpless people, then the world would have been just so much better. Meanwhile, the company's gesture towards helping the survivors received overwhelming support from people, especially from those who had first-hand experience with toxic relationships. For instance, @thepacificthread commented, "As someone who had to escape a domestic violence relationship alone with 2 kids and no help like this, I hope I can help someone like this someday, too."

@joypmurt shared, "This is everything. Love, support, and 'we see you' to the victims. I have goosebumps! I love this and appreciate your company." Echoing the sentiments, @andiandmochaslife confessed, "I got out after 19 years of being together and 16 years of marriage. This would have been AMAZING! Others would need it more than I did, but I still dealt with stalking and hacking (he’s fully capable of hacking most of what he wants, but it turns out he likely installed something in the operating system, so I got to spend like $3k to replace that). I just bought 'my' first house all by myself. He and I had owned them together, but this was all me. It gets better, ladies! Not perfect, and there are hard days and weeks, but it gets better."

You can follow The Digital Picnic (@thedigitalpicnic) on Instagram for more company-related updates.

If you are being subjected to domestic abuse or know of anyone else who is, please visit The National Domestic Violence Hotline website, call 1-800-799-7233, or text LOVEIS to 22522.