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FAQ

FAQ

Fair Trade

1. What do fair wages mean?
  • The Andean Collection pays wages that allow the artisans to lead a sustainable life and lift themselves out of poverty. Determining the price we pay for an item is a consultative process which involves analyzing the artisans input costs and the time it takes them to produce the item. We often use the World of Good: Development Organization’s Fair Wage Guide as a benchmark: http://www.worldofgood.org/calculator/  

    2. How much more are the artisans being paid by working with us, rather than selling their products in markets?
  • This depends. First of all, many of the artisans we work with do not have access to sell their products in a market. We have specifically reached out to these artisans in order to provide them with a way to sell their products. Without us, they would be forced to sell to intermediaries for a small fraction of what they earn selling their products to us. Other artisans who are fortunate enough to have one of the limited market stall spaces may be able to sell individual goods for fair prices, but their sales are infrequent and can not be relied upon for steady income. Working with us, the artisans receive reliable work at a price that they think is fair.

    3. Are these products fair trade certified?
  • We are in the process of becoming a member of the Fair Trade Federation. There is now actual certification process for artisan goods as they are composite products (made up of many different inputs). When people use the term ‘certification’ they usually refer to raw materials such as textiles, coffee or fruits.

    Andean Collection History

    4. How did The Andean Collection come in contact with the artisans with whom they work?
  • Amanda Judge founded The Andean Collection after spending the summer of 2008 working on a consulting project for a microfinance company in Northern Ecuador. There, she was researching what rural community members thought they needed to live a better life, as they defined it. Ecuador has a culture rich in art and when interviewing disadvantaged artisans, the most common response was that they needed access to better markets With only a semester left before graduation, Amanda began to think about how she could use her connections to markets in the United States to promote these artisans.

    Production

    5. Who designs the pieces from The Andean Collection?
  • In some cases the artisans have designed the products themselves. Other times the founder, Amanda Judge and other volunteer designers, have worked with the artisans to create new designs or alter existing designs to bring sophistication and style into their works. In most cases it is a collaborative process between the artisan and designers.

    6. Under what conditions are the products produced?
  • All products are produced in homework shops. We continuously visit and monitor the conditions in their homework shops to ensure that they are safe, healthy working environments

    7. Are there any allergy concerns with The Andean Collection earrings?
  • All of our earrings come with high quality sterling silver hooks. For more specific allergy concerns, please contact The Andean Collection directly.

    Environmental Impacts

    8. Do using rainforest seeds in the jewelry harm the environment in any way?
  • No. Using seeds from the rainforest provides communities who harvest those seeds an alternative way to make money from the rainforest, other than logging or selling their land to those who profit from the oil industry. Seeds are sustainably harvested, so that trees are not damaged in the process. The amount of seeds is sufficient so that their use in jewelry products does not take food away from animals, but rather protects their habitat by discouraging logging.

    9. What are the dyes made of?
  • Our producers use a variety of water-based dyes. At times a sealant is used, as it is difficult for the dye to adhere to a seeds natural oils. For specific dye questions, please contact The Andean Collection directly.

    10. What are the artisans view the relationship between the environment and their work?
  • Ecuadorians highly value an organic way of life, and our producers embody this concern in how they create our jewelry. Most artisans prefer to use all natural products, and therefore we design our jewelry pieces with this in mind.

    The Non-Profit Arm: The Andean Project

    11. How have the profits been reinvested in the communities?
  • Currently we are in the planning stages and are submitting our application for 501c3 (non-profit) status. As we are in the first year of operations, we are collecting a fund for our artisans and not currently administering any projects. We plan to start administering our products in the summer of 2009, once we have been in operation for 10 months.

    12. Where do the profits from The Andean Collection go?
  • A portion of the profits (this year, we’re targeting 15%) from The Andean Collection benefit the artisans’ and their communities through direct financial assistance or small-scale development projects. The rest of the profits are re-invested in the business, so that The Andean Collection can grow to work with more and more artisans throughout the developing world. In this manner we can expand our reach and help more artisans in a sustainable manner.

    Misc Questions

    13. Could a store have a line customized to their specifications (different colors, a change in the style, etc)?
  • We are able to customize lines of jewelry for sufficiently large orders, generally over 25 of each product. Please contact theandeancollection@gmail.com if you’d like more information on customization.