Supplier Criteria
1. Artisanal Products
We select brands which employ local workers, and sell products made by artisans and seamstresses by hand.
2. Human Rights
Fair Pay – wages: we only accept brands that pay minimum or living ages, or higher, and ask for evidence of this.
Safety: our brands must ensure a safe, protected environment for employees.
Human Trafficking: we have a zero tolerance policy to trafficking, and conduct due diligence to seek to identify abuses. Suppliers are not permitted to take identification documents from employees. Freedom of movement must not be prohibited and wages must not be withheld.
Child Labour: we have a zero tolerance policy to trafficking, and conduct due diligence to seek to identify abuses.
Forced Labour: we have a zero tolerance policy to trafficking, and conduct due diligence to seek to identify abuses.
Prison Labour: we have a zero tolerance policy to trafficking, and conduct due diligence to seek to identify abuses.
Right to be represented / join a union: all workers have the right to join a workers union.
We prohibit illegal or unauthorised subcontracting of work, in large part to avoid the above taking place unchecked.
3. Bribery and corruption
We have a zero tolerance policy to trafficking, and conduct due diligence to seek to identify abuses. We recognise that in some jurisdictions bribery is commonplace and requested for even the most routine task, including shipping and customs, and we ask our brands to alert us to any difficulties.
4. Animal Rights
We do not accept brands that test products on animals or abuse animals at any point in the process.
We do permit leather goods to be sold on our site, providing that this is locally sourced, made from scraps, and an integral part of local heritage and craft, which employs numerous artisans. Our priority is lifting people out of poverty through employment opportunities.
5. Environment & Sustainability
Our brands are assessed against their consideration and communication regarding materials used, specifically: locally sourced, natural fibres, organic, upcycled, recycled.
The processes employed during manufacturing: water usage, minimizing waste. We prohibit use of toxic substances.
Packaging to be made from recycled packaging and waste.
Obtaining certifications and proof of previous audits – B-Corp, GRS, GOTs, Fairtrade, Better Cotton Initiative, Cotton Made in Africa, ECOCERT, recycled materials certifications or similar.
Carbon Footprint: we request that our brands use locally sourced materials. We are working on creating a seamless delivery service that reduces our carbon footprint (this will feature in our Impacts report).
6. Ethos, Alignment of Social Impact Objectives, Training and Empowerment Opportunities
Above all, we work with brands that share our vision of empowering local artisans and their community, remunerating staff well and enabling specifically female workers to be financially independent and learn key skills. Our core ethos is: encouraging transparency, entrepreneurship and local empowerment in Africa. We provide training to support brands that share our values and are seeking to meet or improve upon the above criteria.