Our Suppliers Environmental and Sustainability Policies

In our ever-changing world, we all know how important it is that we are doing what we can to protect our environment. Many of our suppliers have detailed environmental and sustainability policies and address the issue of fair trade for workers and modern slavery. We have put together some of this information so that you can get a snapshot of what many of our wonderful suppliers are doing to address these issues:

AFRICAN CREATIONS/TRAVELLERS FINDS ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

We are a family business based in the Cotswolds, establishing our business in 2004 when Kes travelled to Zimbabwe to find talented Zimbabwean Artists creating amazing metal sculptures from recycled oil drums and other metal off cuts, and local carvers, carving the most wonderful sculptures from various beautiful stone from their local quarries using just simple tools.

After spending 6 weeks in Zimbabwe Kes had bought enough pieces to fill the first container, this was the start of African Creations. We continue to work very closely with the Zimbabwean artists to bring quality craft and sculpture at affordable prices to the UK.

 In 2009 we started Travellers Finds. Travelling to Thailand and Indonesia, we work together with the families that we have worked with since the first trip, and travel around in search of new carvers and Artisans.

We chose Travellers Finds, as we felt the name encapsulates anywhere in the world that we find handmade treasures. We are lucky enough to work closely with some amazing people and have built wonderful friendships over the years and now also have a lovely extended family. Dealing directly with the artists allows us to be a truly fair-trade company, as the artists and their families receive 100% of the money that they charge for their work.

It is with pleasure that we showcase that wonderful work and bring you our collection of Travellers Finds.

AMICA ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

The success of Amica is attributed to our fair trade policies…..

Many miles away in Nepal we work with a superb company that help us with the product development and creation of our items. It is this team that bring our ideas to life and make the wonderful critters our customers take home to their families.

When setting up Amica, social equality in the workplace was a priority for Julia. It is imperative that every person involved in making our items works in a clean & safe environment; is respected by every member of the business; earns a fair wage and is over the legal working age. We are proud to say that our supplier is a guaranteed member of the World Fair Trade Organization and was also the first Fair Trade USA certified company in Nepal!

 Amica Actions as of 2021

1. 100% SHEEP'S WOOL - All of our new Christmas decorations will be plastic free. Decorations will be made from 100% sheep’s wool with no polyester filling in sight or inside!
2. PLASTIC FREE LABELS - Removal of plastic kimbles attaching the labels to products.
3. GLITTER FREE - We have removed all glitter and metallic thread from our new product designs.
4. RECYCLED PACKAGING - All items will be packed in recycled plastic bags, recyclable or paper bags.

ANNIE OAK ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

At Annie Oak we are passionate about the environment and the world that we live in. As a brand we have vowed to be vegan friendly, cruelty free and as plastic free as possible. By being an ethical and eco-conscious brand, every decision we make has the environment at the forefront of our mind.

Our beautiful pieces are designed in the UK and manufactured in a SMETA (Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit) audited factory to ensure responsible and ethical business practices in our supply chain. 

We make our packaging so beautiful so you will hopefully love to keep it to store your precious jewellery. Our packaging is 100% recyclable and is made out of FSC certified responsible materials. This ensures that the trees that are harvested are replaced or allowed to regenerate naturally so by making the packaging we are not depleting nature. 
Our ribbon does not contain any silk to ensure our products are vegan friendly. Our jewellery pouch is made from vegan friendly faux suede. Our tissue paper is acid free, recyclable and biodegradable. 
The perfect eco-friendly touch to the perfect gift.

CADENZA CLOTHING, ITALY - ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

All of the linen and cashmere from Cadenza is made in Italy, giving it an extremely low carbon footprint. Even the goats which produce the cashmere are Italian goats!

The fabrics are created using a process where there is reduced water required for production.

The Italians have a very strong ethical policy towards their employees, and ensure that the people who make the garments work in a safe working environment with fair pay.

EAST OF INDIA - ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

Designed in Britain

Today all our products are designed with love and care at our studio in Folkestone and we still work closely with our original ‘family team’, who now employ numerous other friends and family members to satisfy demand.

Thanks to your support we can offer sustainable employment to our artisans who are still able to earn a living using traditional skills passed down through the generations.

The East of India team in Folkestone has also evolved and grown, many of our staff have been with us since the early days. They respond with energy and enthusiasm to the ever changing requirements of a small business. We now print and manufacture all of our greetings cards, labels and paper products in house.

Environmental Values 

East of India takes seriously its corporate responsibility on environmental issues. For a number of years we have been involved with a tree planting project in Indonesia. Wood used in today’s products come from seedlings planted no more than 10 years ago. Each tree harvested is replaced with another, which in turn will be ready to use 10 years after planting. The tree used is Albizia Falcata, grown in the foothills on dry land that cannot be used for rice fields.

East of India is also the owner and guardian of ‘Oak Wood’ in Kent, 22 acres designated as ancient woodland in an area of outstanding natural beauty and a site of special scientific interest.

Our office and warehouse in the UK has a solar power installation which helps us generate over half the electricity we need. Importantly this saves over 32 tons of CO2 being added to the atmosphere every year. If you would like to see what our solar power system generates please visit www.sunnyportal.com

Never wasteful

We have always been mindful of our impact on the environment and since the beginning have always used recycled paper and cardboard wherever possible. We re-use all boxes from our suppliers to repackage our customer’s orders. We use corn starch compostable bags for our greeting card packaging. Our box fill is also recycled paper scrunched by machine, securing and protecting your orders.

GRINGO FAIR TRADE ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

Gringo is passionate about fair trade and committed to adhering to its principles, as we have done since the start of the business in 1988.

As ethical trade is very important to us, we only buy from factories or co-operatives that we have visited in person, in order to ensure that all our suppliers meet our fair trade criteria. These principles are:-

• No child labour
• Equality in the work place, ensuring both men and women receive fair and equal wages.
• Safe working conditions, regular breaks and paid holidays, religious freedom and hourly wages.
• Development of skills and new ideas, using traditional methods to western standards.
• To pay the price the supplier needs and not to haggle for a cheaper price.
• To pay up front for all or goods including a minimum of 40% deposit with initial order.
• To encourage respect for environment and to stop pollution and promote organic and sustainable produce.
• To maintain long term relationships with our suppliers, giving them confidence to make improvements and investments.

Thank you for sharing our vision. Here is a little bit about us!

Gringo is a leading fair trade clothing, accessory and giftware company based in Swansea, supplying customers in UK and Europe.

Born in 1988, Gringo is the result of many carefree years travelling the globe with a surf board under arm. Deb and Dave travelled around Europe, North Africa, Asia, The Americas and Australia. Then, finally inspired by truly amazing sights, unique crafts and wonderful weaves decided to share their finds. Dusty Mexican villages, tropical beaches and Himalayan slopes, all influenced the Gringo of today, whilst not compromising their over-riding ethical principle of fair trade and helping to provide much needed employment in ethnically deprived areas.

We like to encourage traditional methods of tie-dying, sewing and weaving, offering a marketplace for local expertise and to stop the decline in traditional trades, also to help women find work that they can do at home, to support their families in very poor rural areas.

Gringo is renowned for its exciting and colourful clothing, beautiful accessories and truly innovative gifts which are made from sustainable sources. Each season, Gringo provides a stunning collection of tops, t-shirts, dresses, skirts trousers and shirts, inspired by nature with natural weaves, tie-dyes and uniquely individual cotton printed fabrics. The majority of our women’s and men’s wear is designed in house, sympathetically working together with tailors overseas, to offer you stylish, bohemian alternatives to the mass production of the high street. We specialise in handmade clothes with unique hand finished touches, like appliqué, stitching techniques and quirky decorative extras making every item of clothing original and individual. No two pieces are the same!

We also pride ourselves in completing the look with delightful felt accessories, bags, hats and many super home-wares and crafty gifts.

We continue to travel several times a year to the Far East to pass on to you our wonderful fairly traded, ethically principled products.

Be as passionate about fair trade as we are and help make world poverty a thing of the past.

JELLYCAT LIMITED MODERN SLAVERY & HUMAN TRAFFICKING STATEMENT 2021/2022

This statement is made pursuant to section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 which was passed in the UK in recognition that throughout the world there are offences of slavery, servitude, forced or compulsory labour and human trafficking. It highlights the need for discourse and awareness of the topic and requires UK businesses to produce a statement regarding the steps they have taken throughout the financial year to demonstrate the part they have played in mitigating this issue.
We at Jellycat are determined that slavery and human trafficking in any form should not enter our supply chain, and the integrity with which our products are created should be upheld all the way through the manufacturing process and beyond.

Our business - We have a Head Office in London, a UK warehouse facility, an office in Minneapolis, USA and an office in Shanghai, China. In each location, our senior management have a clear directive to report any concerns in relation to modern slavery and to act upon them without delay.

Our supply chain - Since our establishment in 1999 we have strived to develop, maintain and uphold direct and sustainable relationships with all our manufacturers and suppliers as this provides us with a transparency throughout every step of the manufacturing process. It also encourages a partnership based on honesty and openness. Our supply chain, the people who help manufacture and deliver our products, includes manufacturers in Asia, international shippers and 3^rd party warehouses in Hong Kong, Minneapolis, and Shanghai.
We have always worked closely with any new manufacturer to ensure they are audited to social and ethical standards before we commence any manufacturing of Jellycat products. Subsequent annual audits are conducted wherever any Jellycat design is manufactured, and these all follow a recognised audit programme such as ICTI, SA8000 or BSCI and include worker interviews, documentary evidence checks and site tours. These assessments and audits can be planned or unannounced and are carried out by both third parties and senior Jellycat personnel.

Our policies - We are committed to the wellbeing and welfare of our colleagues and workers in our supply chain.  To reinforce our zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery, we introduced the Jellycat Responsible Sourcing Code of Practice (JCRSCOP). The JCRSCOP is used in conjunction with our long-standing, existing requirements for social compliance transparency and regular third-party audits.
It specifies in more detail the obligation of those manufacturers and suppliers that work with us to adhere to the UK’s Modern Slavery Act 2015 ensuring there is compliance and support within the management of our manufacturers and suppliers, embedding the understanding that Jellycat will not tolerate any form of modern slavery.  
All our key tier 1 manufacturing partners have signed the JCRSCOP to demonstrate their commitment to the standards we have laid out within it.
  
Our progress - In this financial year, 2021/22, we continued to support all suppliers remotely due to local and regional travel restrictions as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.  We focused on continuity of production with our manufacturers to ensure they upheld their obligations to the workers in our supply chain.
Whilst travel in person was limited, we maintained close contact through email and video conferences/calls.  As soon as travel restrictions eased, resumed travelling for face-to-face meetings with our suppliers and manufacturers.  
We began working directly with key tier 2 suppliers to ensure they are aware of our expectations and the requirements within the JCRSCOP.  We also encouraged and supported our manufacturing partners to make their suppliers aware of the requirements within our JCRSCOP.  Going forward we will ask for a commitment from key tier 2 suppliers to ensure compliance with the JCRSCOP is documented and reported back to us.
The JCCOP for manufacturing quality and the JCRSCOP are both evolving documents that we continue to review and update.
We continue to have a direct ongoing dialogue with key partners within the supply chain to  reiterate the values integral to our business and that these need to be adhered to within their supply chain too.

Next steps - looking forward into the next financial year (2022/23) our scope will broaden further to suppliers within the UK, including those who supply packaging materials to our warehouse and production of marketing materials.
We will continue to map out key tier 2 suppliers and engage with them to ensure their adherence to the JCRSCOP and our commitment to ensuring modern slavery and human trafficking does not enter our supply chain.
We will continue to engage with logistics partners at our warehouses in the handling of our direct to consumer and business to business orders.
We will continue to assess our policies in the areas of recruitment, whistleblowing, supply of goods and services and due diligence assessments.
We will review and update training and support information for Jellycat colleagues as well as our key third party partners.
This statement is made in reference to section 54 (1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 for the financial year 2021-2022 and has been approved by the Board of Directors
 

JUST TRADE FAIR TRADE ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

 Just Trade collaborates with artisans around the world to create handmade jewellery and accessories. Founded in 2006 by jewellery designer Laura Cave, Just Trade is a collaborative, innovative brand.

Born out of the recognition that in order for small Fair Trade projects to be sustainable, they need a long-term route to market for their goods. Just Trade now works with eight groups of artisans in Peru, Ecuador, India, Indonesia and Vietnam.

Combining traditional craft skills and materials with expert knowledge of contemporary jewellery and accessories, we have developed ranges of unique, characterful pieces with strong appeal in the European market. From exquisite crocheted silverwork to beautifully carved tagua pendants, our distinctive products are made with care and skill from locally-sourced and ethical materials where possible.

The Just Trade UK team has over twenty years of experience working with Fair Trade projects in South America and Asia. After studying at leading Universities, the members of the UK design team have individual specialisms in jewellery, photography, illustration and graphic design.  

QUAIL CERAMICS ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

Quail has been producing quality gifts for over 20 years. We design in-house and work with our model makers in England, Thailand, and Sri Lanka so that our lovely animals and birds are unique.

We work very closely with small family businesses and sit alongside our skilled craftspeople to develop our designs. This extra involvement really shows in the finished product. By this method we aim to keep valuable hand-painting skills alive in a world where mass production is the norm

These small family businesses value and look after their staff, many of whom have been with them for years – even going so far as to buy grain and other foods in bulk and selling it to the workers at the wholesale price, helping them to live a better life.

SHOELESS JOE ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

Most of our products are made in The Philippines by three family-owned businesses. We are now working with the second generation of family members. The product materials are mainly tin and indigenous wood known locally as Dap Dap; a soft pine like wood. The wood is offcut stock from the local construction industry. We also use small pieces of driftwood. The tin is sourced from domestically manufactured production. The paint is non-toxic acrylic. As Shoeless Joe has grown over the years, so have our suppliers which in the case of our key manufacturer has meant they have been able to offer work beyond family members to many members of their village. Some of the production is outsourced which has allowed married women and mothers to be able to work from home whilst fulfilling family responsibilities. The volume of work has in turn meant parents can fund better and longer education for their children. All the products are made by hand. All the workers are adults. There is strictly no use of child labour. Craft manufacturing in the Philippines is more expensive than that of other regional manufacturers. This is because we pay the workers more than the industry standard compared to countries like China and Vietnam. Generally, the men operate the machinery and carry out the paint spraying, whilst the women are responsible for the detailed painting and screen printing.

In 2019 we introduced our range of Decal Enamelled products. Our manufacturer in India is the third generation within the family-owned business, dating back to 1953. Most of the production is produced inhouse supported with a little out-sourcing. The mango wood is sourced from sustainable production, where stock is constantly replaced. Mangos trees cease bearing fruit after 15 to 20 years, at which point here are felled and sold to timber merchants.

Ethical Trading Initiative

We are confident the manufactures we work with do comply with ETI Base Code or are in the process of achieving full compliance. We verify this via site visits at the manufacturing address, rather than at trade events or show room/office addresses. In brief the ETI ensures employment is freely chosen, that workers can join and utilise representative associations, that working conditions are safe and hygienic, no use of child labour, no excessive working hours, no discrimination, regular employment and no harsh or inhumane treatment of employees. The only commitment that is difficult to comply with is that of regular employment, although historically we have been able to offer full year on year work.

Plastic neutral

With the increasing concerns for our environment, we have committed ourselves to ensuring we remove all single use plastic from our products. We have already implemented several changes with the materials we use to reduce and ultimately cease any dependency on single use plastic products within our company. We are running down current stocks of materials that do not comply with this new policy. Plastic swing tag ties have been replaced with Twine, Jute and Cotton. Acetate bags have been replaced with paper or a bio-degradable material. This policy also applies to outer packaging used within the warehouse environment 

​

TILNAR ART ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

Making a Difference & Improving Lives

Our aim is to buy high quality, ethically sourced and environmentally friendly products from disadvantaged producers from across the developing world in order to help people trade out of poverty.



We are a relatively small family run business that looks to work with individual artisans, co-operatives and small businesses across the developing world.  Tilnar Art is proud to be a member of BAFTS, the British Association for Fair Trade Shops and Suppliers. 

Buying Policy

Tilnar Art predominantly buys from primary producers. We make advance payments for materials, to help our suppliers buy raw materials and this ensures that producers do not have to take on debts in order to complete our orders.  We try to order regularly from each producer to maintain continuity of demand and we pay for all orders once the goods are ready in their countries of origin.



We either visit our suppliers personally or ensure that our agents in each country make regular inspections to check that Fair Trade standards are adhered to.  We also encourage our suppliers to join national and international Fair Trade bodies. In addition each supplier is asked to complete a comprehensive Fair Trade questionnaire.

All our suppliers ensure that their workers are paid a fair price per piece, and we strive to make sure that men and women are paid the same rate. We aim to ensure that no children under the age of 16 are involved in production of our products.  Many of our items, particularly from Zimbabwe and South Africa, are produced by home workers which provides useful additional income whilst allowing them to look after their homes and families.

Buying Policy In Zimbabwe

Tilnar Art aims to help provide stable employment and basic needs for many dependants in Zimbabwe during a time when unemployment and inflation are at unimaginable levels.  Our artists either work for themselves or work in co-operatives.  We ensure that we pay a fair price for all our products and our fair buying policy can be seen by the fact that our family run supplier has worked with the same artists for over 15 years. 

The items are purchased direct from the artists, thereby supporting the indigenous tribes of Zimbabwe.  We can confirm that no money is paid to the Government and the money goes to our family run supplier who pays the artists.  Indeed more often than not our supplier is advancing money to the artists to help them support their families before products are even made.  We believe that it is now more important than ever to support these artists during these very difficult times as the ability of these artists to support their families depends on our purchases.  We believe that we should not turn our back on individual artists due to the human rights abuses of a government as to do so condemns them to even greater hardship.

Environmental Policy

Tilnar Art seeks to minimise our impact on the environment.  All our items are handmade so no machinery or energy is used in the making of our products.  We do not air freight any of our products and transport all of our products by sea to reduce the carbon footprint of our products.

We hope you enjoy the Tilnar Art collections.