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Our Business Members
CFT boasts 50+ incredible business members who are bringing fair-trade goods to Chicago and all over the world. Check out their businesses below.
If you're a business and want to get involved, go to our Become a Member page for an application. |
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ABBY ALLEY
ABBY ALLEY is an independent design brand that creates fashion collections in East Africa with the purpose of giving back to initiatives in the region that provide access to education, basic needs, and employment opportunities. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor, General Gift |
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Afrikan Duka
Having lived and worked in Kenya for six years, founders Moses and Iris established Afrikan Duka to support Kenyan artisans and female entrepreneurs by giving them a platform to display their talent and products in the U.S. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor, General Gift |
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Artisans of Ghana
Charmed by the people on Ghana and the vibrancy of their culture while visiting the country on a mission trip, founder Terri Neil was inspired to find a way to expand the market for Ghanaian artisans so they could better support themselves and their families. Within a year, Artisans of Ghana was created with a mission to expand economic options for its artisans & to make Ghanaian products available to consumers in the United States. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor, General Gift |
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The Bean Caffe/Awake
The Bean Caffe/Awake operate four cafes in Chicago including The Bean at DePaul and the Port Center Cafe at UIC. At all of our venues, we are proud to serve fair trade Metropolis Coffee. Food & Beverage |
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Blossom Inspirations
Blossom Inspirations is a fair trade company working with artisans & their communities to produce toys, ornaments, and women’s fashion accessories. Each product was designed and produced in a such a way that positively affects their artisans, wholesalers, retailers, consumers, and the environment. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor, Babies & Kids, General Gift |
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Bright Endeavors
Bright Endeavors is a non-profit social enterprise of New Moms Inc, that instills confidence, professionalism, and responsibility into adolescent mothers. They provide intensive training and a pathway out of poverty for young mothers in Chicago as they transition into quality, permanent employment. Participants gain job skills as they produce premium soy candles and bath products. Home Decor, General Gift, Bath & Beauty |
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Campo Alpaca
We create unique, high-quality clothing from some of the best material in the world – alpaca fiber. We are a social impact company benefiting the small businesses and communities in Peru with whom we work. Our belief is that business should be a force for GOOD. We are dedicated to creating new and exciting products while benefiting the communities with whom we work. We ensure fair wages are paid to all of our team members and work with them to offer opportunities to build them up! Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Canaan Fair Trade
Canaan Fair Trade, a Palestinian commercial enterprise, enables small farmers and women organized in village cooperatives to pool their resources and have direct access to long-term global market opportunities through the sale of olive oil, almonds, and other regional delicacies. This enterprise helps to create economic stability for rural Palestinian communities caught in the midst of conflict. Food & Beverage |
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CAUSEGEAR
CauseGear is an accessories brand with a focus on human justice. The line is designed in Chicago and made in India, and their mission is to transform the lives of people trapped in poverty to become self-sustaining. Every item has the name & face of your crafter and every purchase supports a job, paying 5x the local norm. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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CEW Design Studio
CEW Design Studio is a Chicago-based art therapy social enterprise serving Bosnian refugees and South Asian immigrant women. CEW, which stands for “Creatively Empowered Women,” provides a welcoming space for sewing, knitting, crocheting, and art sessions that enhance life skills and cultivate a sense of community. They promote holistic well being through skill sharing and fellowship and empower women by offering practical, economic, and emotional support. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Chicago ArtiZen
ChicAgo ArtiZen is a family owned holistic culinary company, infusing passion in hand-crafted chocolates that tantalize the palate and socially conscious eco-friendly values that satisfy the soul. Food & Beverage |
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Fair Anita
Fair Anita is a social enterprise that exists to create opportunities for women and girls, selling cute + ethical + affordable jewelry and accessories made by over 8,000 women in 9 countries. We partner with female artisan collectives and provide them with fair wages, long-term employment, and business development opportunities. By paying artisans at two or three times the minimum wage, we generate income for women that helps them respond to violent gender dynamics in their community. By committing to reliable partnerships, we help our partners grow their businesses and provide more women with paths to economic independence. By connecting resilient and talented artisans with new markets and customers, we're helping women be leaders in their communities. We aim to create a community of women who celebrate, support, and invest in one another's success, building a world where we can all thrive-- no matter our geography. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Fairgrass
Fairgrass brings beautiful fair trade baskets, sourced from Africa, to you for your home and gift giving. Every basket they offer is hand crafted by an artisan who is paid a living wage for their work. Whether you buy a beautiful, useful woven market basket from Ghana, a finely woven tray from Uganda or a unique, very special telephone wire basket fashioned by a Zulu master weaver, you will know that your purchase supports the artisan who created it in a fair trade fashion. Home Decor |
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Global Attic
Global Attic LLC is a woman-owned business that sells home décor sourced from founder Kabria Cummings' travels around the world. Kabria is passionate about providing merchandise that not only beautifies the home but also helps to improve the world by helping to sustain the global community through fair pay, education, and giving back initiatives. Home Decor, Gift |
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Global Elements
Global Elements strives to provide economic opportunities for skilled artisans in their craft as well as protect the environment. We often work directly with the artisans to make unique and fun handbags and accessories. Eco-friendly or reusable materials are used where possible and we educate consumers about the benefits. Most items are made in small quantities and some are one of a kind. Home Decor, Gift |
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Global Handmade Hope
Global Handmade Hope is a fair trade wholesale and retail store. They opened their doors in 2009 and offer sustainably produced merchandise from around the world. You’ll find a diverse array of fair trade home decor, accessories, apparel, kids’ items, and food in their shop – all produced fairly by artisans and farmers from developing countries. Food & Beverage, General Gift, Babies & Kids |
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Gracia Inc.
Gracia’s mission is to economically empower young women in Guatemala. Economic empowerment means young women are able to earn income, become financially literate, live independently, and stand up for themselves. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Gracias Fair Trade
Gracias is a mobile fair trade retailer, regularly attending local craft fairs, farmers’ markets, and church or synagogue fair trade bazaars. They work to provide people living in poverty with good jobs that pay fair wages. The artisans whose crafts they sell work to make their families’ lives and their communities safer, healthier, and more economically stable. General Gift |
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Grain of Rice Project
Grain of Rice Project is a ministry that empowers artisans, families, and children in Kenya with educational and employment opportunities. We work directly with all of our artisans, who create handmade, fair trade jewelry, bags, purses, home decor, accessories, and more using paper beads, scrap fabric, and other eco-friendly materials. GORP runs a workshop in Kibera Slum in Nairobi, where many of our artisans live. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor |
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Greenheart Shop
Change the world with your purchase. Greenheart Shop is Chicago’s premier eco-friendly and fair trade not-for-profit retail store. Greenheart believes that consumers have the power to affect positive change in the world by supporting sustainable and fair trade business practices. Shop sustainable jewelry, kitchen and home decor, gifts, and more. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor |
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Guardian Village Handicrafts
Guardian Village Handicrafts empowers women in Nepal to make a living through vocational training and life skill development. There are currently over thirty ladies who are trained and equipped to craft the beautiful hand-beaded jewelry and accessories. Our crafters are able to earn an income that allows them to properly care for themselves and their families. Each GVH crafter is given an opportunity to learn to read and write, in addition to learning practical life skills and earning a wage. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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HHPLIFT
HHPLIFT creates jobs and career paths for people in Chicago with significant life barriers to employment. They are also a direct provider of jobs to people from underserved communities in Chicago through their 1eleven® Program. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor, Bath and Spa |
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Huaywasi: Light and Leadership
Huaywasi, a project of The Light & Leadership Initiative, works with indigenous women in Peru to provide education opportunities, job skills training, and a market for their artisan products. The Light & Leadership Initiative works with several artisans, all women, who are looking to further develop their handicraft skills while providing a steady source of economic support to their household. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor |
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ILAVA
ILAVA aims to become one of the leading, socially responsible fashion brands in the industry by offering the best quality attire and lifestyle items at a price point that reflects the brand's ability to give back. More importantly, ILAVA wants to create a culture where women will embrace the uniqueness and versatility of African clothes without feeling out of place in mainstream society. By celebrating women, entrepreneurship, education, and success against all odds, ILAVA will continue to grow ahead of the curve and offer unique products to service the ILAVA woman. In addition to this, ILAVA will continue to give back to the country of Tanzania and other global south countries through amazing programs, partnerships, and sponsorships. ILAVA derived from Nyamwezi, a Tanzanian tribal language which means "It Can Be Done!". Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor, General Gift |
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Indie-Pendant
Indie-Pendant is a Chicago-based jewelry design house founded by GIA-certified graduate gemologist Anjali Raj Hansoty. She works with Fair Trade Certified companies in India to produce small-batch and one-of-a-kind designs. Women (specifically) and community empowerment are concepts she believes in and promotes. Indie-Pendant offers modern contemporary designs made with traditional workmanship. Bespoke commissions are welcome. Jewelry |
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Indigenous Artworks
With her love of diverse cultures and her appreciation for beautiful stylish design & hand-crafted goods, Carol Fonds created Indigenous Artworks in 2001. Her philosophy is to collaborate with indigenous people to help them sustain their livelihood by keeping their craftsmanship & creativity alive. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Just Haiti
JUST HAITI, Inc. focuses on the poorest communities of Haiti, transforming both the consumer and producer through a just and dignified relationship. Our Fair and Direct Trade business means we purchase coffee directly from the grower associations, with no intermediary organizations. The up-front price we pay is higher and we return all profits from the sale of the coffee directly to the coffee growers and their families. This puts more money in their pockets. Drink coffee, grow justice! Food & Beverage |
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Kathmandu Yogi
Kathmandu Yogi is about unlocking your inner potential and living beyond limits. From meditation cushions, to yoga mat bags, to malas, Kathmandu Yogi products complement your lifestyle and help facilitate your daily practices to nurture your body and mind. All Kathmandu Yogi products are fairly and sustainably made, and the brand’s trading partnerships are based on dialogue, transparency, and respect. Health & Wellness |
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Koluntu
Gorgeous, unique products handcrafted by the tenacious people of South Africa. Accessories made from Ostrich Feather & Leather, Mohair, Crocodile and Springbok. All materials used to create our products are sustainably farmed, ethically sourced and handmade using fair trade principles whilst aiming for zero-waste. We are committed to Aesthetic and Quality, bringing you a glamorous piece of Africa to wear for a lifetime. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor |
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The Little Traveler
The Little Traveler is a retail store in Geneva, IL, that sends travelers to scout throughout Europe and the Far East to bring back the most wonderful treasures. Visitors will find an ever-changing collection with new shipments arriving continuously. Be sure to check out their Fair Trade Gallery! Fashion Accessories, Apparel, Home Decor, Housewares, Fair Trade Food |
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Loom
A project of Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement Program, Loom is a Chicago-based social enterprise for refugee women from Bhutan, Iraq, Congo, and Afghanistan, where women gather together weekly to produce beautiful handmade products designed in collaboration with local Chicago designers. Refugee women have the opportunity to create, market, and sell their products as a source of income for their families. As a result of this social enterprise, women who have fled war and violence from all over the world have the opportunity to work together in Chicago, learn new skills, produce beautiful handmade products, earn an income, and be a part of a community of creative and enterprising women. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor |
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Malia Designs
Malia Designs is a socially responsible fair trade brand that designs and sells handbags and accessories. The company was formed to increase economic opportunity for women in Cambodia and to support organizations that fight human trafficking in Southeast Asia. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Marketplace: Handwork of India
Marketplace: Handwork of India is a pioneering non-profit that empowers women in India to break the cycle of poverty as they become leaders in their work, their homes, and their neighborhoods, and affect lasting change in their communities. Marketplace works with over 400 artisans in 11 cooperatives that produce high-quality women’s apparel and home decor. They learn skills such as sewing and embroidery and participate in all aspects of running their cooperatives. In addition, programs offer educational and enrichment opportunities designed to help the artisans overcome personal, cultural, and financial obstacles. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Mata Traders
Mata Traders is a Chicago-based fair trade apparel and accessories brand. Their products are handmade using artistic traditions such as block-printing and embroidery, combined with flattering design and a flair for color. That’s just half the story – Mata provides fashion with impact. For their producers, it’s an opportunity to make a better life for their families. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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MAYTA Collection
MAYTA Collection is a boutique ethical fashion label inspired by a love of travel, culture, and indigenous art forms. Founder and designer Maggie O’Reilly travels frequently and has connected with many artisans on her journeys. Each piece is handcrafted in small batches using up-cycled, found textiles and raw materials. We work with artisans in Morocco and Peru to source fabrics that would otherwise have been discarded, then create pieces that will breathe new life into the materials. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor |
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Metropolis Coffee Company
Metropolis Coffee is one of Chicago’s most well-known coffee brands, and several of their beans are certified fair trade and sold in local coffee shops and grocery stores. Metropolis is committed to building community & investing in Chicago-area employees, including a partnership with Aspire Coffeeworks, providing jobs roasting their coffee beans for Chicagoans with disabilities. Food & Beverage |
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Milagros
Milagros envisions a better world for girls and young women: a future in which each woman has economic opportunity and a recognized voice in her home, her workplace, and her community. Milagros jewelry and crafts are completely hand-made by young women in the Gracia program. All profits are directed back to the girls, helping to meet their daily needs, funding the training program, and providing emergency funds for special needs. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Motif
Motif is a friendly business that connects the amazing artisans of Bangladesh with fair trade buyers worldwide since 1998. Their on-trend lines of accessories and home decor are made from local materials using only traditional techniques, which ensures many livelihoods are benefitted in the making of each product. Now available to retailers in the US via Minga Fair Trade Imports. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor |
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The Mustard Seed
The Mustard Seed, a fair trade shop in Lake Forest, is committed to partnering with cooperatives and artisans in developing countries to provide a market for their creations. Their suppliers pay a fair wage and/or allow the artisans to set the price for their products so they can make a sustainable living and emerge from poverty. The Mustard Seed also donates a portion of its profits to organizations that help empower women and children. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Home Decor, Food & Beverage |
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Omolaso Designs
Omolaso Designs was created out of a void in the children’s market. A fashion line specializing in contemporary ready-to-wear pieces for boys and girls, Omolaso Designs combines the bold and vibrant African prints of the past with modern designs for a stylish yet affordable clothing line. Ranging from active wear to formal wear, Omolaso Designs are colorful, durable, and fun. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Production Mode
Production Mode, a Chicago-made line of apparel and accessories, draws on the strengths of the art, design, and activist communities in Chicago and beyond. Featured on the cover of Billboard Magazine, their collection is made to order at their Chicago studio, which allows them to minimize ecological and financial waste. Production Mode is committed to fair trade practices, including transparency through their supply chain, paying living wages to the weavers, tanners, cutters, and stitchers who produce their pieces, and reducing their environmental impact. Production Mode’s showroom and production space is open to the public. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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RefuSHE
Formerly Heshima Kenya, RefuSHE specializes in identifying and protecting unaccompanied and separated refugee children and youth, especially girls, young women, and their children, living in Nairobi, Kenya. Through their peer-driven social enterprise project, The Maisha Collective, RefuSHE fosters leadership and business management skills through the design and production of unique hand-dyed scarves and textiles. Participants in this program gain life-long business and marketing skills that develop their confidence and prepare them for future independence. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Re:New Project
Re:new Project exists to provide employment in a safe space for refugee women to thrive. Through our free sewing class, we hire Artisans to sew and create beautiful one-of-a-kind goods. All products are made from upcycled materials locally in the Chicago suburbs by refugee women who have resettled in our community. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Sandpiper Imports
Sandpiper Imports offers a unique & classic collection of high-quality .925 sterling silver jewelry handcrafted by artisans in Bali, Indonesia. In keeping with internationally recognized fair trade principles, Sandpiper Imports is focused on building equitable, long-term partnerships with their artisans and honoring their rich cultural creativity and traditional craftsmanship by selecting pieces that were designed by the artisans themselves. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Soko Space
Soko Space is a fair trade, woman-owned company based in the Chicago area that specializes in personal, home, and garden items from Africa. They purchase directly from producers and provide small grants to expand businesses in producer communities. With their profits, they help to fund Global Alliance for Africa’s therapeutic arts program and community library. Home Decor, General Gift |
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SORA Products
Extreme poverty in the Philippines affects about 19% of the population or 18.4 million people. SORA Products is empowering talented women by providing markets for their hand woven products so they can provide sustainable income for their families and experience holistic transformation through this missional business partnership. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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SOS PJs
I am a new entrepreneur and want to surround myself with like minded people. I have a mission to give back and empowering women in less fortuant situations. Being a women, I feel it is important to show little girls and women worldwide how powerful they are by gaining independence. My mission is to Soothe Souls Globally One Enevelop at at Time by giving back to communities in need and offering sewing lessons to women in order to gain employment, financial freedom & power to rise up and support themselves. Apparel |
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Susan Wheeler Design
Susan Wheeler uses fairmined 18 karat gold and recycled platinum to create unique and timeless jewelry. Handmade right here in Chicago, Susan Wheeler Designs melds modern and traditional design qualities, creating the highest quality jewelry and accessories with a truly unique texture. Jewelry |
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SUSU Accessories
SUSU Accessories is a fashion accessories brand whose products are handcrafted by the indigenous Wayúu people of the Guajira peninsula, divided between Colombia and Venezuela. “We want to be part of a new fashion paradigm. We choose to deal with clients and distributors who identify with our Fair Trade philosophy and who value our ancestral roots. We want to be recognized as “The Thread Between Two Worlds”; the Arijuna (modern) world, and the traditional Wayúu world. We are the brand that creates new, high fashion designs that are compatible with contemporary fashion trends, without losing its Wayúu ancestral essence.” Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Sweet Beginnings
Sweet Beginnings LLC makes the family of beelove products, an all-natural line of raw honey and honey-infused body care products. They extract their honey from their all-natural urban apiary in the heart of the North Lawndale Community in Chicago. Not only do they resepect the earth in the production of their products, but they also provide importation transitional job opportunities for area residents who struggle with barriers to employment. Food & Beverage, Bath & Beauty |
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Taylor Tall
Taylor Tall is founded by Taylor and Nathaniel, a couple on a mission to change the fashion experience for tall women. Creating garments that accommodate a wide range of tall figures is challenging, but their strong sense of curiosity spurred the creation of a new approach to garment production. At Taylor Tall, our work is fueled by our passion for understanding the intricacies of how clothing fits. We strive to improve every aspect of the clothing you wear from the fit and construction to the fabric and finish. We believe your Taylor Tall garment should feel different than every other piece in your closet. We hope to make shopping for your true fit effortless Apparel |
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Ten Thousand Villages - Oak Park
Ten Thousand Villages in Oak Park, IL, is a fair trade retailer of artisan-crafted home decor, personal accessories and gift items from across the globe. Featuring products from more than 130 artisan groups in some 38 countries, they are part of a network of over 390 retail outlets throughout the United States selling Ten Thousand Villages products. Home Decor, Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Food & Beverage, Bath & Beauty, Kids & Baby, General Gift |
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Terra Experience
Terra Experience was started in 1999 as a very small, socially responsible business to help Mayan friends in Guatemala earn some additional income for school supplies and other needs of their families. They sell handmade doll clothes that are just the right size for American Girl dolls, which look similar to traditional Guatemalan huipiles, but take much less time to make. Kids & Baby, General Gift |
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Terry Klay
Terra Klay is a social enterprise, committed to keep cultural traditions alive by empowering entrepreneurial-minded artisans, with limited resources, from small tribal communities in North East India. Terra Klay brings a curated line of black clay, handcrafted pottery unique to the artisan communities of Manipur enabling craftspeople to continue their traditional art as well as introduce these functional and simple pottery to the world. It is built on the idea that every product has a story and if you listen closely enough, it will tell you about the hands that crafted it and connect you to a timeless tradition. Food & Beverage, General Gift |
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Tree of Life
Tree of Life Imports was founded in 1989 during El Salvador's civil war as a means to bring the art of la palma to the American market. Since then, we have focused our attention on several Latin American communities to help provide equal opportunity for all to work, including women and the rural poor. All of our products are handmade by artisans in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico. Tree of life imports is committed to fair trade and economic justice. We pay a fair price that has allowed our producers to greatly increase their standard of living. Home Decor, Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Food & Beverage, Bath & Beauty, Kids & Baby, General Gift |
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Tulia's Artisan Gallery
Tulia’s Artisan Gallery seeks the finest accessories and home décor handcrafted in Colombia. As the country recovers from generations of violence and internal displacement, Tulia’s mission is to show that art is the other Colombian export, and works to source this art directly from artisans working to preserve ancestral lands, culture, and traditions. Home Decor, Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Kids & Baby |
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Venture Imports
Venture Imports supplies beautiful and unique gifts from Kenya. Venture Imports is a company dedicated to providing employment to people in developing countries by giving them access to North American markets. Home Decor, Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Via Seven
ViaSeven is an online retailer for soft home goods and textiles founded by two women. Their products are crafted by small suppliers and artisans who share the values of fair trade and environmental consciousness. As part of their mission to be more than a product, but also a feeling, a solution, and an inspiration, ViaSeven donates a percentage of their profits to causes dedicated to the wellbeing of women and children. Home Decor |
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The Winding Road
The Winding Road features collections of beautiful handmade scarves, shawls, handbags, and children’s toys from around the world. They seek out small, fair trade compliant suppliers who use eco-friendly fabrics to provide ethical and sustainable accessories and gifts. The Winding Road also participates in several markets and trade shows in the Chicago area and provides wholesale product options to retail stores and museum shops. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Kids & Baby, General Gift |
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Ubuntu Trade
Ubuntu Trade partners with East African artisans and makers bringing, unique one of kind goods from their world to yours. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, General Gift |
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Work + Shelter
WORK+SHELTER’s mission is to make it easy for organizations and consumers to purchase wholesale quantities of high quality, ethically made, customized sewn goods. In pursuit of a more just world, we employ women in need and when possible use other social enterprises, natural fibers, recycled, organic, or otherwise eco-friendly inputs. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, Kids & Baby, General Gift |
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WorldFinds
WorldFinds creates positive change in the world through ethical design. This B2B brand includes jewelry, accessories, and gift items that are handmade in the developing world by fair trade artisan partners in India, Nepal, and Indonesia. WorldFinds designs for the fashion forward, socially-conscious consumer, and simultaneously cultivates empowerment and financial security for their women artisans. They believe fair trade is about much more than just a fair wage; an equal emphasis is spent on improving the artisans’ communities, preserving cultural traditions, eradicating child and sweatshop labor, and helping to alleviate poverty. Fashion Apparel & Accessories |
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Y'abal
Y’abal Handicrafts is a Guatemalan artisan organization that supports indigenous women’s weaving cooperatives, providing them with local and international markets. Y’abal seeks to increase the opportunities and quality of life for women in the Western Highlands of Guatemala while preserving the traditional art of back-strap weaving. Mixing the traditional with the contemporary, Y’abal creates modern and stylish products that maintain centuries-old cultural symbols and weaving techniques. Fashion Apparel & Accessories, General Gift |