And a visit to http://www.tenthousandvillages.com is certainly worth the effort. Craft here is tied very closely to developmental opportunities in low income countries. I’m sorry to hear that the current economic environment is proving a challenge to the selling of these products. It would be interesting to compare this to other kinds of sales. And also equivalent sales of world craft in other countries.

So how might this trade survive the economic downturn? Perhaps if products could be developed that could be used in everyday life, like accessories or friendship tokens. This seems the time to be trying out different alternatives.

As one of the oldest and largest nonprofit fair trade retailers, and one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies, we strive to improve the livelihood of tens of thousands of disadvantaged artisans in 38 countries by establishing a sustainable market for handmade products in North America. Given the current economic downturn, we are faced with new challenges to successfully market and sell handmade products that help pay for food, education, healthcare and housing for artisans who would otherwise be unemployed or underemployed.

As a nonprofit, we achieve this mission by building long term buying relationships in places where skilled artisan partners lack opportunities for stable income. Our commitment to support artisans around the globe is strengthened through fair trade compensation practices including cash advances and prompt payments. More than 60 years later, and as the company continues to grow, Ten Thousand Villages has become increasingly conscious of the need to marry the concept of fair trade with healthy and environmentally sustainable business practices.

Today, Ten Thousand Villages continues to carry out a conscious approach toward minimizing an environmental impact. From store operations to product selection to marketing practices, Ten Thousand Villages strives to meet the “triple bottom line” of economic, environmental and social sustainability.

While our mission is clear, current economic factors are making it even harder to bring fairly traded principles and products to the mainstream consumer market. Please visit tenthousandvillages.com to learn more about how we define fair trade–it is much more than just an “ethical turn”–it’s a way of life we’re committed to, and our artisan partners are counting on.

Best,
-Gabriel