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Marin Independent-Journal, CA Nancy Isles Nation
Hillary Sciarillo is a young San Rafael mother whose business is making a difference in the lives of hundreds of women on the other side of the globe.
Her three-year-old enterprise, Yellow Label Kids, is a line of toys, clothing, accessories and party supplies that has been growing quickly with sales of as much as $200,000 anticipated for 2008.
All of the items she sells - in retail stores, online and by catalog - are made by women from two collectives in Bangladesh. Sciarillo designs all of the concepts and has patterns made and sent to the organizations. (more…)
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Petaluma Argus Courier, CA Cheyenne Kent
In Lebanon, Noelle Marshall says people are warm and giving, that front doors are always open and children can go off on their own for several towns over. She takes these childhood principles and pours it into her new store, Petaluma’s first exclusively fair trade establishment. (more…)
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Chicago Tribune Ann Meyer
Forget slashing prices. What picky shoppers want this holiday season are gifts with meaning.
So merchants are scouting for items that are environmentally or socially responsible, whether that means produced locally, often with recycled material, or made in accordance with fair trade standards, which require that workers are paid a living wage in safe conditions.
(more…)
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New Mexico Business Weekly, NM Carrie Seidman
All good things must come to an end.
At least, that’s how Melinda Rand Kenefic was feeling two years ago when she saw a precipitous drop in sales at Celebro, the Nob Hill clothing store she and her husband, George Kenefic, opened in 1991.
The business, which featured natural fiber clothing — originally for larger-sized women, and later, for men and children — had steadily been producing about $375,000 in annual revenue for more than a decade. Equally important to Rand Kenefic, the loyal consumers who frequented the shop had become “a sort of support group,” one that shared everything from births and divorces to job changes, she says. (more…)
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MarketWatch Market Wire
Consumers looking for an affordable, personal gift this holiday season can also change lives by purchasing handmade baskets, trays or Christmas tree ornaments from the Rwanda Basket Company (RBC), a Seattle-based company working to directly improve the lives of hundreds of impoverished Rwandan women who survived the horrific genocide in 1994. (more…)
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Dekalb Daily Chronicle, IL Carrie Frillman
Laura Kettner places a great deal of importance of individualism and environmental respect.
“The world has so much commercialism that you need to assert yourself however you can,” the Sycamore resident said Saturday while crocheting a purse out of plastic grocery bags.
She was one of 14 vendors selling her handmade crafts – skirts made of neckties, as well as jewelry and scarves – at The Uncommon Market hosted by the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of DeKalb. (more…)
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La Crosse Tribune, WI KJ Lang
One of the easiest ways to change the world is with your pocketbook.
That’s what Guy Wolf, who works in the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse’s Office of Multicultural Student Services, tells students.
Starting Monday, several UW-L student organizations are taking those words to heart and counting on student and community pocketbooks to support fair trade. (more…)
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MyFox Saint Louis, MO Betsey Bruce
Holiday shopping hassles don’t exist at a local Fair Trade Market where soothing music and eager volunteers greet shoppers.
The market, which runs through Saturday, November 29 at 4:00 pm at the Manchester United Methodist Church, offers a wide variety of products made by artisans who receive fair wages based on their local economies.
Organizers began the annual market six years ago. This year they hope to sell $100,000 worth of merchandise. (more…)
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www.recordernewspapers.com Madison Eagle, NJ
MADISON – Grace Episcopal Church, 4 Madison Ave., will host a one-day international handcrafted gift sale from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6, to support living wages for artisans working in developing countries.
In addition to underwriting fair trade, shoppers will learn about 130 affiliated artisan groups in 36 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. (more…)
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Bethany Beach Wave, DE Darrell Neale
Those looking to shop — and help the world’s less fortunate — should stop by the Distant Neighbors Fair Trade Festival, slated to be held Nov. 21 and 22 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church.
At the annual event, shoppers have the opportunity to purchase Fair Trade articles such as jewelry, clothing, household items, holiday decorations, books, toys, coffees and more. (more…)
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