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Category: Fair Trade Connections
Fair Trade is connected to all issues: environmental, social, economic, health, spiritual…. This part of the blog explores these interconnections and attempts to help us see how actions in one area connect to and effect all others.
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To all of our amazing friends & customers in the
Fair Trade Community!We support you
We are in a place of the unknowable in regard to the true impact of the Coronavirus on the Fair Trade community, but trust that together we will get through this. We are a group of forward thinking people who are forging a new path, together. For this we are the lucky ones.
At Ganesh Himal Trading, we and all of the producers we work with, have been so lovingly supported by you all in times of crisis: during the Nepali civil war, the murder of the King’s family, the devastating earthquake of 2015, the India ban and more. You have worked with us and adapted with us through all of this. Now we can do the same for you. We love our community and we are here to see you succeed.
Artisan Update
The current situation: Luckily we just got a big shipment of goods on March 11. That means that we are fully stocked and that the producers just got a big payment. I have been in touch with all of our producer groups to explain the situation and help them understand that we will try our hardest to get them their normal orders for May but that they should be aware that we may not be able to due to store closures and quarantines. All of them understand and all of them are worried for you and wish you well. They have been through so much just in the last 5 years that they are understanding of uncertainty, cope very effectively and know there is “the other side” of disaster. Our producers receive orders and payments every two months so none of them are in a dire situation, at present, which is good. Ganesh Himal will try hard to provide them all with good orders in May and they know that. We have been through a lot together and we will get through this too.
In Nepal they are also trying to understand how the virus will affect their lives. The government has closed the borders, is no longer issuing tourist visas and has canceled all climbing. They are also in the process of closing schools and trying to understand social distancing. For a country that is highly dependent on tourism this is devastating. It will require a lot from all of them.
Have questions or need an ear?
As for our team in Spokane this is another amazing group. We want to keep each other safe and healthy so as of this past Monday we made the plan to have only one person in the warehouse from 9-5 Monday through Friday. Everyone else is working remotely but can easily respond to your emails and continue to be in touch with you to keep you informed. We will keep this system in place as long as we need to so that everyone is safe. The best email to use is still info@ganeshhimaltrading.com or you can call in M-F to 509-448-6561.
We are flexible
Because our shipment just arrived, we will be calling everyone regarding any backorders, as we normally do. We totally understand if you want us to wait to send anything or even to cancel. If you do decide to take your back orders and want to work out payments due to the uncertainty that is fine too. Any one of our staff can help you with that. If you have the resources to pay, we of course appreciate that too. The major point is that we want you to have what you need to get through all of this and stay in business. We will work with you in whatever way makes that possible.
Join our Fair Trade Retail Support Facebook Group
Finally, if there is any creative way we can help you get your sales online we would like to help with that as well. We encourage everyone to join Ganesh Himal’s Fair Trade Retail Support page on Facebook to gain insight and energy from what others around the country are doing to cope and thrive! This is a very creative and inspiring group of people and will help you feel community when we are alone. You can sign up here https://www.facebook.com/groups/retailsupport/ .
We are compiling resources with you
Also, be aware that there are plans emerging for small business grants and loans. Facebook is unfolding one here https://www.facebook.com/business/boost/resource . As Ganesh Himal finds out about these kinds of interesting and helpful items we will post them on the Facebook retail support page and hope that you share them far and wide. Let’s share resources and ideas and build our community even stronger. Think about where we want to be 1 year from now and write down your vision. If we have clear intentions it will focus our actions and help us through.
Finally
This crisis will take clarity, patience and perseverance to move through but the ultimate story has not yet been written for how it will play out and we can all play a part in writing the chapters that mean the most to us. Much is at play and much will change. We need to prepare for how to birth that change and create stronger community. We stand beside you in that.
Our very best to you in these times,
Denise, Ric, Austin, Eileen, Sarah, Michele and Justin and all of the producers in Nepal
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Interview with Kevin Natapow: Cultivating Strong Customer Relationships
Kevin Natapow is a retail consultant specializing in inventory management, business development, POS systems, HR, customer service and marketing. His company, Creative Retail Solutions, serves to lend retail/inventory expertise to Fair Trade and other retail shops around the nation. Before starting Creative Retail Solutions, Kevin co-founded Momentum, a Fair Trade store in Boulder, CO. He helped grown Momentum in to a successful Fair Trade business and now lends his expertise to other retailers.
Strong customer relationships are the foundation of a successful retail business. Ganesh Himal Trading had the chance to sit down with Kevin and ask him what he thinks helps cultivate stronger relationships.
GHT: What are some ways retail shops can build strong customer relationships?
KN: After choosing the best possible location for your shop one of the next best things you can do is build strong customer relations and have a strong customer service ethos for your shop. It can be hard at times for smaller brick and mortar retailers to compete on price with other larger and online retailers, but the one place we can really shine is the customer service experience. Basically, you want as many customers who walk through your doors to leave feeling like they just had the most amazing retail experience ever. The easiest way to do this is to have some very robust and clear customer service expectations of your employees/volunteers. You will need to lay out how you envision the customer service experience and then create comprehensive protocols for training your employees/volunteers around those expectations. Anyone you put out on the floor to interact with customers is now the face of your organization so having them well trained and clear on expectations is critical as well as holding them to those expectations.
GHT: How do you lay the foundation for long term, repeat customer relationships?
KN: A great strategy for creating long term, repeat customers is again, making their retail experience the best it can be with customer service but rewarding them for their loyalty can go a long way. Many POS systems these days have built in customer loyalty/rewards programs that make it easy to implement and track. Brand your loyalty program somehow with your store’s brand so that it is easy to pitch and can have its own identity and buzz around it. Make the rewards something substantial and memorable. For example, my shop had a program that rewarded customers with a $50 reward for every $500 they spent. It never expired and the POS system tracked everything for them and showed on the receipt how they were progressing in the reward. When they reached that mark it popped up in the system and could automatically apply the $50 reward to their purchase. As part of the enrollment process we gathered their birthday month and address and mailed them a $15 gift certificate on their birthday. The whole program was free and within 3 years of implementation our email and member list grew from around 1,500 subscribers to over 11,000. Customers love feeling special and being known by the shops they support so rewarding them for their loyalty will keep them coming back and spending more. Plus, the word of mouth advertising they will do is priceless.
GHT: What are some ways retail shops can build a sense of community through their store?
KN: Partnering with other local NPO’s and community-focused organizations and businesses is a great way to attract new customers and reach possible demographics that may not hear about you or naturally come across your shop. Host events in your shop that help raise money for local NPO’s or host events where you are helping to raise awareness around certain local and/or global issues. When you host these events the organization you are working with will cross-market with their supporters and get them to show up for the fundraiser and now you have a whole new group of potential customers that at least know about you and the work you are doing, but also know that you are supporting something they believe in. You can also hold book readings by local authors, participate in art walks, food events with local restaurants, etc. If there is something going on in your downtown area, participate in it and attract customers by showing up and being present and engaged.
GHT: How important is it to network within the larger community to get the word out about your store?
KN: This plays into the strategies above but as a business owner or manager it is very important to network within the larger community. Seek opportunities to speak to different groups about Fair Trade and artisan support. You can talk to business organizations, schools, etc. Look for ways to connect through your chamber of commerce or a local downtown business organization. It is also a great way to seek mentorship from other successful business people who can offer advice or expertise.
GHT: What are some of the most effective ways a store owner can communicate the values behind their brand to their customers?
KN: This is a tricky one as we don’t want to come across as over “preachy” about Fair Trade but it is great when customers know more about the impact they are making by supporting fair trade and local businesses. I don’t feel floor staff should lead with fair trade and focusing on the values and mission of the shop. Lead instead of cultivating that amazing customer service experience and making a personal connection with your customer. Once that relationship is established and you are engaged with them, you can talk about the products, the artisans and 9-10 times the conversation will evolve into something powerful and meaningful around fair trade and the work your shop is doing to create positive change. It can be hard to accept sometimes but we are just retailers trying to sell products to consumers. Yes, we are fair trade and more than just that but to most of the first time customers coming into our shops, they don’t know that. Win them over first, gain their trust and confidence and build the relationship, then use that as your opportunity to grow their knowledge about the impact they are making by shopping in your store.
Off-Setting Our Carbon Footprint
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“I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree” are the words of poet Joyce Kilmer. Words I have carried with me since childhood. I love trees, I seek their solace, shade and beauty. Recently I grew to love them even more as I listened to the words of Indian scholar and environmental activist, Dr. Vandana Shiva. In an interview with Claire Dubois of treesisters.org Vandana so eloquently stated that if we are looking for the best way to sequester carbon and heal the earth, nature has provided us with the ultimate carbon sequestration machine… trees. They are the complex lungs of the earth and provide a way where all of us can step in to help collectively in the healing of our planet.
Ever since Ganesh Himal Trading started we have worried about the environmental impact of transporting goods halfway around the world. To mitigate this somewhat, we have used only recycled boxes, built a super insulated, energy efficient warehouse on 40 acres that preserves pine and aspen forests and created as little waste as possible. But listening to Vandana’s words I realized we had an avenue by which to do much more. We could plant trees. Through Treesisters we found Eden Projects and are now entering into a partnership with them (read below) to plant trees in Nepal to offset the impact of each of our shipments.
As members of the Fair Trade Federation we are required to “cultivate environmental stewardship” as “fair trade seeks to offer current generations the ability to meet their needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. This is our commitment to you, to your customers, to our partners in Nepal and to our beautiful planet. We have been paying to plant and care for 4000 trees/year since 2019 in Nepal going forward and 1000 trees/year going backward. This tree planting, through Eden Projects, will not only help produce beauty and sequester carbon, it will also provide Nepali’s, 70% of whom are forest dependent, with good paying jobs and an ability to stay on the land for years to come. We are thrilled to be a part of this work.
Please check out these websites above and learn more about these amazing movements. It is by all of us joining together that we can move forward through to a more loving, healthy and just world. Enjoy the fall and remember the trees.
Namaste,
Denise
We plant 4,000 each year, equaling 8,000 trees planted in total over the past two years.
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The 2023 Festival of Fair Trade
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Join us for the 2023 Festival of Fair Trade!
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Artisan Spotlight
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Sadle Traders & Ram Bahadur
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The Ganesh Himal Trading tailors create a beautiful array of men’s and women’s clothing, bags and headbands. Mostly made from handwoven cotton fabric, the tailors partner with many local weavers to produce some of the highest quality handmade clothing. In addition to handwoven fabrics, they also incorporate recycled and sustainable materials including hemp, recycled rubber, no kill leather, recycled saris and wool.
Ram Bahadur’s Story
Ram Bahadur was born in Chitwan (which is 140 km away from Kathmandu) and he now lives near Thamal in Kathmandu. He has a family of 5, 1 son and 4 daughters who are now all grown. Ram Bahadur is a pattern master and fabric cutting master, but can also act as a tailor if he is called to. Tailoring has been in Rams family for more then 4 centuries. He first began to tailor when he was 15 years old and learned from his father. In turn he has taught this trade to his son and his daughters. Being able to work at Sadle has given him the ability to buy a nice piece of land and build a fair sized house on it. It has also enabled him to send his children to school . In the future he wants to continue to work here at Sadle until he retires. When he retires he wants to live with his family and play with and help take care of his grandchildren. Ganesh Himal Trading has worked with Ram for over 27 years!
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Succession in Action, Part 2
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Co-Owner, Denise Attwood Namaste! Candi Horton and Brian Schmucker of what was formerly Baksheesh Fair Trade are fair trade retail pioneers writ large. If you’ve been involved in Fair Trade you have most likely felt their influence and benefitted greatly from their mentoring and small business advice. Even now, as they transition out of owning their Fair Trade stores they continue to help by shining a light on ways to keep the stores they so consciously created alive.Here, we carry on our conversation about how to intentionally plan for the transition of fair trade businesses to the next generation. In doing so we hope to help build and strengthen the future of Fair Trade by helping fair traders keep the vision of their stores and businesses alive long after they have stopped being their owners. We also hope to create a platform for an open and fruitful dialog around the successes, failures and near misses of those who are or have transitioned their Fair Trade businesses.We are all leaders and learners in understanding how to keep these visions alive so hearing from our community hopefully will serve us all well. We hope these conversations will spark something within you to begin thinking of how you can transition your fair trade business in the future. Your community, the artisans and some young energetic visionary you mentor will be so grateful to you if take the time now to create that pathway.We would love your insight, stories and comments as we continue this conversation.On another note, we are really excited to announce the launching of Conscious Connections Foundation’s new website and the completion of CCF’s 2018 Annual report. This added layer of removing barriers to women and girls in Nepal is meeting with great success. Enjoy!Namaste,Denise[/fusion_text][fusion_separator style_type=”none” hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility” class=”” id=”” sep_color=”” top_margin=”50px” bottom_margin=”” border_size=”” icon=”” icon_circle=”” icon_circle_color=”” width=”” alignment=”center” /][fusion_title hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility” class=”” id=”” content_align=”left” size=”1″ font_size=”” line_height=”” letter_spacing=”” margin_top=”” margin_bottom=”” text_color=”” style_type=”default” sep_color=””]
Succession in Action, Part 2: Interview with Candi Horton from Baksheesh
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Candi Horton and her husband, Brian Smucker, are former owners of Baksheesh Fair Trade in Sonoma and St. Helena, CA. Their work in fair trade spanned almost 20 years. Candi talks about their process of selling their business below.What was your exit plan?As we looked toward retirement from fair trade retailing we had two goals: have the business continue beyond our retirement and retire early enough to pursue other interests. This required a long term plan.Consideration was given to closing the stores. This was counter to our reasons for starting stores in the first place. Our purpose in opening stores was to create jobs. To close the business would affect local staff, vendors and artisans. We wanted those jobs to continue.That left selling the stores. But did we have something worth selling? We contacted an outside business valuation company and contracted with them for an overview of the business. This report provided a selling price and areas of operation that could be improved.How did you decide to when to retire?We wanted to do it early enough so we still had the health and energy to pursue other interests. This is quite a subjective goal but for us it meant retiring in our early 60s. With that benchmark discussed and established we could move on to a plan.How did you plan for a seamless transition?Guaranteeing the business’ long term viability after we were gone was very important to us. If at all possible we wanted to sell to someone who understood our community, had a solid commitment to fair trade and had the retail expertise to keep the stores moving forward. For us, that meant looking to our current staff for interest in purchasing the business.A five year plan was structured. Each year training would be scheduled for a different area of retail management including customer service, inventory control, accounting/payroll, advertising/promotion and staffing/training. As each area was covered the owner-in-training would have on-going responsibility for that area. At the end of each year all parties would meet to review the next steps and confirm continued interest in proceeding. With this plan in place we approached our staff for interest.With the five year plan we also committed to assistance in financing the purchase which would include retaining sufficient cash on hand for operations. To start with we assumed this would mean support in securing a small business loan. In fact, it ended with us holding the ten year sales contracts.Did it work?The plan only failed when we failed to follow the plan – sadly. The first store worked seamlessly. The second store had no one on staff interested in the offer. Instead of lengthening the time frame in order to work with a new staff person who might then be open to the five year plan, the plan was shortened. This proved to be inadequate for proper training and oversight and the store closed. Sticking to the five year plan and adding extra reporting requirements to the sale of the second store may have resulted in a better outcome.[/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
Planting Seeds
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Planting Seeds
Nature is and always will be my best teacher. The wealth of wisdom that she shares in the simplest things astounds me. And so I ask questions and she responds in my dreams. When I asked the question of “What is the nature of a healthy business?” her response, “think of a seed”. And so I have been thinking a lot of seeds!
So often in business we look only at today, the blossoming of the flower, occasionally dipping back into the past for lessons learned and rarely planning for the blossoms to happen years from now. Seeds have a lot to teach. They hold the wisdom of the strength of past practices but they also hold within their tiny breadth the complete package for the continuation of generations of blossoms to come.
To continue our vision of Fair Trade we need to be like a seed. We need to plant the seeds now that will allow our businesses to thrive long after we are gone. We owe that to the producers, to the movement and to the customers that have grown to love, support and depend on us to provide fair trade goods. And we owe it to perpetuating the wisdom that we have garnered along the way.
Ric and I started Ganesh Himal Trading as youngsters, 35 years ago. Throughout the years we have cultivated a warm and compassionate staff here in the US and an amazing group of partners in Nepal that have made it their life’s work to make our collective vision a reality. That was the first seed planted. But leadership has to evolve away from founders and into the hands of those who have been mentored. Eight years ago we started to cultivate the soil for the planting of the seed that would allow for the continuation of our dream far into the future, encapsulating the Fair Trade values and relationships cultivated over these 35 years.
And so on June 1, Ric retired and Austin, who many of you know, became my business partner. This transition has been a long time in the making and has been cultivated with the same care as the rest of Ganesh Himal Trading. Read on to hear their thoughts on letting go and moving forward.
If Fair Trade is to grow and prosper we need to engage in what it takes to transition and to do it now. We have seen many great businesses continue on because of this planning and far too many fail. Take care that the seeds you planted are well tended and ready to blossom again and again, without you, into the future. Our Fair Trade partners and movement deserve that care.
Making the transition legal! [/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
Fair Trade Collaborative Partnerships
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Dawn Patel is an artist and business owner in Door County Wisconsin. Her business “Brilliant Stranger” found its name in a dream, and reflects a sincere belief in the potential we all have to shine. Wearable Art has become a focus in her creative business, and working with Ganesh Himal in the production of some of her most popular designs has made it possible to experiment even more with original dye processes and surface design. Her processes include but are not limited to machine, hand stitching, painting, block printing, plant dyes, low impact dyes, and hand beading. Each piece of clothing is unique and full of personal expression.Dawn’s art and business reflect a constant striving to honor the earth and all living creatures. She works with materials that are ethically sourced and/or repurposed whenever possible and is always trying to learn and improve. The artistic visions come from a spirit and a place that cannot always be explained, but honoring that creative spirit is the single most important part of her process.You can find her items on www.brilliantstranger.com and etsy: https://www.etsy.com/sho p/brilliantstranger [/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
Namaste from Nepal 2019
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NAMASTE FROM NEPAL!
I love beginnings, looking back at what we’ve done, what went well, what didn’t and getting the chance to start anew. Beginning the New Year in Nepal is even more special. Sitting and looking into the faces of many whom I’ve known for over 30 years, reflecting back on our struggles and successes together is a gift. I am full of gratitude for our partners’ hard work and dedication, to the advancement of women in particular, but more generally to their belief in our shared dream of making the world a better place, together and across cultures. Being in Nepal I am constantly reminded of how close they sit to the understanding of how much community, friendship and dedication matter, and I am so appreciative of the lessons they continue to teach me. So, it is wonderful to be back in Nepal with them at the start of the journey of 2019.Of course, each day in Nepal begins thinking of you, our retail customers, and what we can create that will bring you and your customers amazing, great selling, fair trade Nepali products. This year Austin and I are here together focused on practicality, up-cycling as many materials as possible while at the same time creating items that are long lasting, unique and affordable made with Nepali materials. It is sheer joy to work alongside our artisan partners here and watch their creative process unfold before us. We are so excited to share all the new items coming to fruition with you in the months to come!We cannot begin the New Year without the acknowledgement of our amazing staff who bring Ganesh Himal Trading to you every day, even while we are at work in Nepal. Eileen, Sarah, Michele and now Justin create the space for Austin and I to be in Nepal worry free, handling each day with such skill and dedication that we know you are in loving hands!So here’s to 2019! We hope 2018 was successful and full of great sales, story and connection. We can’t thank you enough for all of your support. Please let us know how we can help you in 2019 and know that the artisans look forward to a prosperous and exciting year together.NAMASTE,Denise & Austin
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International Fair Trade Charter Defines Vision for a Fairer World
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International Fair Trade Charter Defines Vision for a Fairer World
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Many people use the term “fair trade,” but what does it actually mean? Today, more than 300 organizations around the world are uniting to launch an International Fair Trade Charterthat harmonizes the fundamental values of fair trade and defines our common vision towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Business as usual will not deliver the step change needed to meet the SDGs, adopted by the world’s nations on September 25, 2015 and whose third anniversary is being marked today in New York and around the world.The International Fair Trade Charter, initiated by Fairtrade International and the World Fair Trade Organization, defines new models that build a stronger economy and environment for all. The Charter has been recognized by diverse local, national and international organizations from across the cooperative, social enterprise, organic, farmer, and global solidarity movements.
Regarding the launch of the Charter, the Fair Trade Federation’s Executive Director Chris Solt stated, “The Fair Trade Federation (FTF), the trade association representing over 200 fair trade enterprises in the U.S. and Canada, enthusiastically joins in solidarity with the larger fair trade movement to support, promote, and endorse an updated and revised International Fair Trade Charter. The new Charter refreshes the vision of fair trade, proposing solutions and a viable alternative to a global economy that is driving inequality, poverty, and ecological crisis. The FTF also endorses a shared vision of a world in which justice, equity, and sustainable development are at the heart of trade structures and practices so that everyone, through their work, can maintain a decent and dignified livelihood.”
The global fair trade movement urges policy-makers and business leaders, citizens and consumers to embrace the vision of the International Fair Trade Charter to create a global trading system populated by supply chains and models of business that leave no one behind. By supporting fair trade producers and businesses, advocating to transform the rules of global trade, and buying fair trade products, we can all act to make sustainable and fair development a reality and give the world a fighting chance at reaching the goals we set for ourselves.
For more information, to show your support, or for a copy of the International Fair Trade Charter, visit fair-trade.website.
Reprinted with permission from The Fair Trade Federation
Rachel L. Spence (rs@fairtradefederation.org) is the Fair Trade Federation’s Engagement Manager, responsible for communications, public engagement, and advocacy for fair trade principles and practices.[/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]