Fair trade, also known as alternative trade, plays by a different set of rules than normal commerce. Instead of exchanging goods or services based on clout and driving hard bargains, fair trade is based on economic and social justice. The key goals of fair trade are to empower low-income, disadvantaged artisans around the globe, and to promote understanding between them and North Americans. Baksheesh needs to be profitable to remain sustainable, but we exist to market crafts for artisans, not to see how much money we can make.


Baksheesh purchases Third World goods through fair trade organizations that follow these principles:

• Pay a fair wage in the local context, pay promptly, and often pay 50% in advance.
• Provide opportunities for disadvantaged artisans.
• Engage in environmentally sustainable practices.
• Build long-term trade relationships.
• Provide healthy and safe working conditions.
• Reflect and reinforce rich cultural traditions.
• Provide financial and technical assistance to workers whenever possible.

We do a little direct importing ourselves. But for the most part, we work through fair trade wholesalers who work directly with artisan groups and handle the importing for an informal network of fair trade stores like us. Both wholesalers and retailers also commit to being accountable to each other and to the public, and transparent in our operations.

There are two primary independent fair trade membership organizations for the kind of items we sell. IFAT, the International Fair Trade Association, consists of fair trade artisan groups and fair trade importers or traders around the world. The Fair Trade Federation consists primarily of North American fair trade retailers and importer-wholesalers, as well as some artisan groups. Both IFAT and FTF have strong codes of ethics and rigorous standards for membership.

Baksheesh is a member of the Fair Trade Federation. We purchase crafts only from members of FTF and IFAT. Our primary trading partner is Ten Thousand Villages, the largest fair trade organization in North America and a founding member of IFAT. We also purchase from a number of smaller fair trade organizations, which often focus on single countries and artisan groups.

When we can -- usually once or twice a year -- we visit artisans ourselves. We see their homes and workshops, how they make things, and their surroundings. We learn their stories, and we show them pictures of their products in our stores.

Fair pay for Third World artisans, good value for you, great gifts for your friends.

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