http://www.livinglakecountry.com/sussexsun/news/79908922.html
Partnership will stretch support across the globe
New fundraiser is win-win for both organizations
Posted: Dec. 22, 2009
Sussex-area Outreach Services (SOS) recently announced a new, global partnership. Village Markets of Africa, a fair trade business headquartered out of Kenya, has partnered with SOS in a win-win situation that will benefit both entities.
Village Markets of Africa organizes African artists into cooperatives that become a second family for them by means of the support structure for the work they do. Village Markets works with the artists to determine a fair price for their products alleviating the need for a middle man to help sell their goods. Village Markets spokesman Jacob Schmalzle, said the artists receive 5 to 10 percent more this way and Village Markets pays the cooperatives 75 percent upfront so that they can purchase more materials and also have money immediately Schmalzle explained.
The products are shipped to a warehouse in the United States where volunteers ready them for display and sale on the Web site, villagemarketsofafrica.com. Schmalzle said Village Markets stands out among other fair trade organizations because after selling the products in the U.S., 50 percent of the profits are returned to the cooperatives. He said Village Markets is one of the only fair trade organizations to engage in direct profit sharing because, “Our philosophy is anything less than 50/50 is not fair,” Schmalzle states on a video found on the Web site.
Through the partnership between SOS and Village Markets of Africa, when you make a purchase, you simply type in “SOS fundraiser” under shipping instructions and 20 percent of the sale will be donated to SOS for assistance programs it sponsors in the community.
SOS Director and Jacob’s brother, Aaron, said the neat thing is members in both our local communities SOS serves and Africa benefit from this partnership.
“It doesn’t matter where you are, as long as you put in ‘SOS fundraiser’ the money will be directed locally,” Aaron Schmalzle explained.
For more information, visit villagemarketsofafrica.com.
February 28, 2010 at 3:39 pm |
We were thrilled with the ark, before I gave it to our grandson for his baptism, we left it out on the dining room table. Everyday I went in the dining room, a huge grin came across my face. It was so intricately carved and so unique. Each animal had such individual personality, it could have been a display piece of its own. It will certainly make a wonderful baptismal keepsake.