Our Reasons

These are our 10 reasons for why we do what we do. Read more here about great reasons to support the fair trade mission of Ten Thousand Villages!

1. Fair trade relationships we wouldn't trade.

Long-term relationships are key to Ten Thousand Villages' practice of fair trade. With consistent orders from year to year, artisans can plan for the future. The assurance of long-term relationships also enables artisan groups to build their production capacity and grow their businesses. Our fair trade relationships sustain artisan groups and provide a vital source of security during difficult times.

2. Gifts of quality improving quality of life.

Ten Thousand Villages is committed to working with artisans who are economically and socially disadvantaged. Many are able to improve their social status and the quality of life for themselves and their families using the income they earn creating high-quality handmade gifts. Fair trade also provides long-term benefits to the children of artisans, who gain increased access to education, health care, safe and affordable housing and clean water.

3. People paid fairly, working safely.

Artisans and Ten Thousand Villages agree on a fair price that covers the cost of labor and materials and enables artisans to earn fair compensation for their work. A fair price takes into account the length of time it takes to complete a product, a comparison with local wages for similarly skilled jobs and the local cost of living. Ten Thousand Villages also supports the fair trade principle of safe working conditions for artisans.

4. Women thriving through independence.

Most of Ten Thousand Villages' artisans are women. Women benefit from fair trade because in many cases they are able to produce handicrafts in their homes, allowing them to maintain responsibility for their children. Women artisans are often single parents and employment with fair trade organizations provides them with vital income to support their families. Women earning income through fair trade also gain new independence and respect from family and community, and are able to take a greater role in decision making.

5. Good for people, good for the earth.

Ten Thousand Villages encourages staff and artisan partners to employ sustainable practices and to use natural and recycled materials when possible. Our goal is sustainability, not just for our artisan partners, but also for the environment. Fair trade helps curb environmental destruction by supporting hand production, encouraging the sustainable use of natural resources, marketing products made from recycled materials, favoring organic methods of agriculture and limiting transport that contributes to high carbon emissions.

6. Growing businesses, empowering entrepreneurs.

Fair trade is a valuable alternative approach to conventional international trade - a trading partnership aimed at sustainable development for disadvantaged producers. Fair trade seeks to empower entrepreneurs within the craft sector around the world to build viable businesses that provide reliable income for artisans and contribute to a stronger economic base for their communities. Other fair trade practices such as advance payments, long-term relationships and design consultation support small businesses as they build capacity and grow.

7. Cash advances that advance lives.

Artisans receive up to 50 percent in cash advances when an order is placed, and payment in full when an order is shipped. Many artisans are too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans, and advance payments provide the necessary funds to let them cover the costs of materials and equipment without going into debt. By making prompt final payments when the order is shipped, Ten Thousand Villages takes on the business risk associated with getting the product to market.

8. Inspiring design, with a purpose.

Ten Thousand Villages designers and buyers work with artisans to build on traditional skills with trend and color information and new product suggestions. The goal is to translate traditional art techniques into jewelry, home decor items, personal accessories, gifts and artwork that appeal to the American consumer. Our merchandising product assortment plans capitalize on the skills of artisans and the raw materials and natural resources available to them, while taking sales history into account.

9. Preserving tradition in craft and culture.

Through their fair trade relationship with Ten Thousand Villages, artisans around the world are able to use their craft to create a sustainable livelihood. Using and adapting traditional skills and materials, artisans translate communal traditions such as basket weaving, textile weaving, wood carving and silverwork into a vital and reliable source of income for themselves and their communities. This exchange both elevates and sustains longstanding craft traditions.

10. Building capacity, nurturing accountability.

Business assistance and financial planning consultation from Ten Thousand Villages buyers give artisan businesses tools they need to build capacity and to increase their production. This in turn allows them to explore additional trading relationships, providing more work for more artisans. Fair trade encourages transparency and accountability, creating trade relationships in which both buyer and artisans are able to share concerns in open and mutually beneficial ways.