Green Side Out - The green lifestyle

You may think that a fair trade store is where you get good buys on things, but they are more, much more…

Fair trade stores are companies that have agreed to buy goods from manufacturers or suppliers that accept merchandise that has been created by farmers or artisans who are paid a fair price for the goods that they sell. They do not buy from sweatshops, foreign or domestic, and they do not buy from companies that practice unsustainable agricultural practices.

The consciousness of consumers has risen to the point where many people want to work with companies that promote healthy lifestyles, sustainable agricultural, and give buyers unique items that have been grown or created with sustainability as critical, and decent working conditions and wages for its employees. Examples of companies that are practice the ethics of a fair trade store are Starbucks, Ben & Jerry’s, and Trader Joe’s. There are many more, and they sell a wide variety of merchandise. While most of these stores sell products that are produced outside the scope of the definition of a free trade store, these are high profile companies that are helping to bring the cause of a free trade store to the public’s attention.

The consumer has demonstrated that they are willing to pay a little more to buy products that benefit both themselves and the manufacturer, whether it is a company or an individual. By supporting a fair trade store, consumers are voting with their pocketbooks, which is the ultimate statement to corporations to take a look at incorporating more fair trade practices into their own businesses.

Hopefully the days of the sweatshop overseas are numbered. There won’t be a quick revolution from exploitative labor practices, but the more people start buying from a fair trade store and not from companies that pay their workers pitiful wages with substandard working conditions, the faster the movement will happen. Social pressure is a powerful thing, and fair trade stores have demonstrated that they can be successful in promoting items that have been produced in a humane and sociably responsible way.

If you are interested in learning more about fair trade stores and where to purchase items from them, search for them online. You will probably find that there are many more stores than you thought, with items that are reasonably priced, practical, and beneficial to the environment. There is a huge assortment of coffee beans and teas being sold online that come from sustainable farms, and some of the crafts you can find at a fair trade store are stunning. Give them a try, and see if you can make the leap from buying just any old thing, to buying items from free trade stores and help both the people and the planet.