This holiday season I’d like to challenge you to do more with your holiday budget. What if your purchase could be more than just a one-time gift, but one that keeps on giving? Imagine with me you purchase a purse at a local shop in Louisville. You wrap it up and give it to a dear friend on Christmas. The story usually stops there; but maybe it shouldn’t. How often have you thought about where your money went after you’ve made a purchase? Most likely you assume it goes back to the business to keep them afloat. Well, that is true for most businesses. However, for RecycloCraftz the story looks a little different.
RecycloCraftz is a fair-trade 501-C3 based out of Zambia, Africa. We seek to make an educational, economic, and eternal difference in the lives of the impoverished men, women, and children in Zambia. We have about 30 different artisans who handcraft all of our products, pack them up, and ship them over here to be sold. We operate on fair trade principles to ensure that the wages our people are paid for each item they make are a fair and ethical amount. Most would assume that all organizations, companies, and businesses operate this way; however, that is not always the case. In Zambia, the average income is less than $2 a day. In countries like Sri Lanka, the hourly factory wage is just $0.50 an hour. For all of our artisans, the opportunity to work with us is life-changing.
Not only do we seek to pay an ethical wage, but we also go further than that. We want to see families changed and the cycle of poverty broken. This starts with literacy development. The functional literacy rate in 7th grade (basically the number of kids who can read and write) is less than 2% in Zambia and over 63% of people over the age of 14 cannot read. The repercussions of this are innumerable. How do you further your education to pursue a career outside of rock crushing if you cannot take the entrance exam because you cannot read the questions or write the answers? Recyclocraftz works with each of our members to test their literacy rate and improve it, which opens up so many more opportunities for them.
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We also focus on vocational development. Many of our artisans came to the project not knowing a thing about sewing. Now all 30 of our members know how to sew the beautiful products you see featured in our store; from simple microwave bowls to intricate patchwork aprons. They also learn skills such as crocheting. This skill opens up a whole new work field for them. We also teach them small business principles such as saving. 80% of the wages our women receive go directly towards them, but 20% goes into a savings account. This allows them to see how much they can do by saving small amounts at a time. Many of our women go on to start their own small businesses using the skills we taught them. In fact, one of our women went off and started her own clothing boutique, doing so well that she now employees some other ladies involved in our program.
Our products scream of our African roots, with their bright colors and unique patterns, you can’t miss a RecycloCraftz product. We hope to add a little African pop to your wardrobe or home décor, and that you are reminded of the people who handmade each one. Your dollars could go further than just a gift this holiday season; all you have to do is purchase a product from us, we’ll take care of the rest!
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Shop in person here:
1860 Mellwood Ave.
Louisville, KY 40206
Wednesday-Saturday 11-6:30
Shop online and learn more here:
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram here: @recyclocraftz
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