Browsing: Some of our Friends

It’s that time of year again - judging for the fourth annual Triodos Women in Ethical Business Awards is under way, and here at Ethical Superstore we are delighted that three of the finalists are business-women we have been supporting for years.

Anne MacCaig, chief executive of Cafedirect, has been nominated in the Ethical Business Awards category. Cafedirect’s Fairtrade labelled coffees and tea were among the first products seen on the virtual Ethical Superstore shelves, and since then the brand has grown into a nationally recognised name. Anne’s commitment to generating social and environmental benefits for grower communities deserve the recognition given in this finalist position, a worthy winner of the title.

Sarah Brooks and Susi Lennox and their company Yes Pure Intimacy, the only range of organic intimate lubricants and moisturisers, have been nominated in the Ethical Small Business Award Category. Sold through EthicalSuperstore since 2008, Yes products may not be the first line that springs to mind when thinking of ethical trading, but these intimate products have become one of our increasingly popular lines. Sarah and Susi are pioneers for ethical trading in this field, making them excellent contenders for the award.

Zaytoun, also nominated in the Ethical Small Business category, is an olive oil producing company run by Heather Gardener-Masoud, dedicated to improving the lives of olive farmers in Palestine. Showing real dedication to her cause Heather started as a volunteer, before identifying the market gap and transforming her fledgling idea into a multi-million pound business. Her development of the world’s first Fairtrade olive oil and obvious commitment to the cause makes Heather a forerunner in this category.

Despite the current economic climate, people are still choosing to shop ethically to ensure that their hard earned cash benefits the people who deserve it most. Indeed perhaps you could even say that shopping ethically will help to foster the green shoots of hope of economic recovery in places that really need it.

Here at Ethical Superstore we are proud to support women who pioneer in ethical business. The three women nominated for the 2009 awards have vitally contributed to improving the lives of others through viable and profitable businesses, and we wish them all possible success in the final.

Click here to place your vote. The deadline is Friday June 19 at 5pm.

India is a remarkable country. After only a three week visit I’m hardly qualified to say that I know it well, but during my trip I certainly got a wonderful impression of the place, the people and the varied and colourful histories of the different areas.

It’s a country of extreme contrasts: from dry and arid deserts to humid jungles and back waters, but I think the starkest contrast is that of the way that people have, and still do live. With World Fair Trade Day around the corner, it’s a good time to recognise and reflect upon these contrasts, and give extra recognition and a round of applause to the people who are working towards making a difference.

Upon my arrival in Delhi, I was lucky enough to be introduced to the people behind Tara Projects, a long established Fair Trade organisation which is helping to make a difference for the people involved in their programmes. Having never visited a workshop of this kind before I was really excited to be able to visit and discover more of what goes on behind the scenes, and meet the driving forces behind the widespread good work that this organisation achieves.

Read the rest of Fair Trade in Action - My Visit to Tara Projects »

Our friends at Divine Chocolate have come up with a fantastically novel way to encourage people to send an email to politicians to keep fair trade on the agenda at next week’s G20. It’s a simple game – Egg a Politician. You get to throw a chocolate egg at one of  five world leaders — Barack Obama, Nicolas Sarkozy, Gordon Brown, Manmohan Singh or Wen Jiabao — who are all attending the G20 summit, where finance ministers and central bank governors of 19 countries and the European Union will meet to discuss “key issues related to global economic stability”.

As well as the therapy of hurling the egg at your leader of choice, you then get the opportunity to send an email to that leader – direct from the page – just as soon as they’ve devoured the chocolate.

When I first read about this idea I had visions similar to the incident that saw the

Read the rest of Have You ever Wanted to Egg a Politician? »

Anane Mensah sharing his Divine story

This morning, Ethical Superstore was proud to welcome two of the cocoa famers from the Kuapa Kokoo Fairtrade cocoa cooperative, located in Ghana, West Africa. The cocoa that this co-operative grows, cuts and dries is used to make Divine Chocolate, which is certainly more than enough to make all of us sit up and pay attention.

The name ‘Kuapa Kokoo’ means ‘The Good Cocoa Farmers Company’. It’s a bit of a tongue twister in Ghanaian, but it has a good ring to it, and is certainly evocative of the faraway country from where the cocoa originates. It’s a name to be conjured with, and a name which is synonymous with Fairtrade success, as the stories of Mr Anane Mensah and Mr James Adiyiah told us first hand.

Anane’s and James’ roles in the co-operative are important ones. They are both Recorders, charged with the task of weighing and recording the amount of cocoa which is farmed and processed to be sold. Being responsible for the amount each farmer is paid is a large responsibility, and through this job they have both gained a respected place and influence in the Kuapa Kokoo community.

Read the rest of A Divine Cocoa Breakfast »

comedian Elvis McGonagall will be there

To celebrate the art of coffee growing, Cafédirect, one of the biggest names in Fairtrade, is staging the first ever TasteFair - nine days of eco-lifestyle events to stimulate the senses during Fairtrade Fortnight at Whole Foods Market, Kensington High Street, London.

TasteFair will run from 21st February - 1st March and will feature an impressive line-up of some of the UK’s best-known ‘eco’ celebrities and experts including Wayne Hemingway and Oliver Heath. There will also be food tastings, music evenings, story time readings, coffee classes and a specially created photographic exhibition tracing the incredible journey of coffee.

Read the rest of Cafédirect to stage the first ever TasteFair »

The founder, designer and director of Fifi Bijoux, Vivien Johnston, is a leading light in the world of ethical jewellery production – she believes in setting a gold standard through her choice of Fairly Trading suppliers and the eco-friendly and sustainable manner of production. What’s all the more significant is that she’s been creating such a stir that in recent months she’s been invited to speak with and spread her wisdom to some of the biggest names in the gold and diamond mining industry. Fifi Bijoux is working on getting the word out on ethical jewellery production; how it should be done and the undeniably beneficial consequences. In this post Vivien writes about her  experiences during 2008 and what’s been happening in the world of ethical jewellery.

“This New Year, my resolution is to find those little spaces in the hectic pace of life. Those moments when you feel nothing but sheer delight and catch precious times with friends from afar or family you wish you could see more of.”

Technorati Profile

Read the rest of A New Year’s Resolution from Vivien Johnston of Fifi Bijoux »