Follow the Money
You’ve heard the old saying, “Follow the money.” In today’s global markets, that’s often hard to do.
While the American media struggles with the notion of whether or not we are in a recession, cautious consumers are looking at their spending with more skepticism. They want to know where their dollars are flowing.
So, we all find ourselves thinking more about how we spend. Not just because we want to use less of them, but because we have all become more aware of how the flow of dollars impacts so many people in the rest of the world. Most of the money we spend on gas goes to a foreign country while more and more of the money we spend on manufactured goods goes to Asia.
In many cases, though, we don’t know where our dollars go once they leave our hands. The Fair Trade system adds transperency to the flow of dollars by setting standards that ensure those dollars make it into the hands of producers and artisans, not the hands of middlemen, brokers, sweatshop owners, or bottom-line retailers.
Driftless Fair Traders connects you to the flow of your dollars. A purchase in our store means that money flows to places like Kenya, Afghanistan, Ecuador, and to hard-working artisans right here in the USA.
New body oils from Arghand Cooperative in Afghanistan punctuates my point. Rather than succumb to working the poppy trade or depending on the fragile and uncertain local economy, a small group of artisans makes wonderful body oil from local treasures like wild almond and pomegranate oils and sells it here in North America. When you buy their body oil, you can see where the money goes.
We can tell you where every item in our store was made and who ultimately benefits from your purchase. Try finding that out in your average Big Box store.
Keep shopping your good values!