Appeal

APPEAL

It’s dusk in Calcutta, the powers gone again, but that happens several times a day here. The generator is quietly humming outside and the strains of the Hindi singer waft over the stereo, while the sun sets a magnificent orange to purple to violet. It’s cooler inside; the fan is a primary concern when the powers down and the breeze circulates gently, everyone is quietly, working away at their craft. The heady scent of incense is in the air and there is the occasional sound of laughter drifting across the room. They don’t start early here nor do they finish too late. All in good time my friend. No one rushes India.

Everyone is happy to be working here, happy to use their skills, not industrial machines, to create beautiful products for you because they too benefit. A job here is gold dust. Great, reliable wages, holidays, bonuses, a clean, safe, relaxed working environment, a chance to develop new skills. This is our manufacturer, this is how we do business.

Apparently, we, (that’s you) are demanding cheaper and cheaper accessories from the highstreet. We think this is nonsense.

How is it possible to buy a leather handbag for under £10, when the raw materials alone should cost this much? Well it is possible, it’s just someone, somewhere is losing out, in a major way, and you can bet your bottom dollar it isn’t the retailers.

You’ve heard the stories in a hundred exposés. Sweat shops, child labour, people maimed from faulty equipment working for less than a £1 a day, 7 days a week. At what human price the things we buy to adorn ourselves with? Don’t be fooled by glossy façades and brain-washed by marketing. Buy something you can believe in.

Think about what is right and what is wrong. Don’t hurry so much. Take time to smell the roses and think about the choices you make. In the words of the three musketeers, “One for all and all for one.”

Join our revolution.