EcoChic Partnership Questionnaire
About us… EcoChic… Fair Trade, Ethical, Organic… Beautiful designs, beautiful beginnings.
EcoChic is an online boutique and magazine, with ethical & fair trade fashion collections that please the eye and touch the heart. EcoChic is a collection of partnerships with talent, skill and passion that offers hope, style and a fresh approach to ethical shopping. EcoChic is all about products with provenance, we tell you the story of how each product brings about health & well being for our producers. EcoChic showcases our own collections and brings together a community of Fair Trade and Ethical suppliers, skilled artisans in the developing world and here in the UK, offering you exceptional style and quality. Many of our products are individually handmade, using recycled & organic materials and eco-friendly methods of production, offering a unique and exceptional collection.
We are truly inspired by those that we work with and choose our partnerships based upon the organisation’s ethics, quality & style of the product ranges and the difference their products make to both people and planet. The principles we adhere to are ones of openess, transparency and fairness in our business practice. We are interested to work with partners who support our aims and we invite you to complete the following questionnaire to commence our partnership. We look forward to working with you.
Best Wishes,
Deborah Deborah Miarkowska Founder, EcoChic
A simple guide to the Fair Trade & ethical model that we recognise at EcoChic:
EcoChic follows the 10 Fair Trade principles laid down by IFAT (International Federation For Alternative Trade).
What are FAIR TRADE principles?
“Fair Trade is a trading partnership based on dialogue, transparency and respect, that seeks greater equity in international trade. It contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to and securing rights of, marginalized producers and workers”. (IFAT)
IFAT (International Federation of Alternative Trade).
- Fair Trade is a partnership between producers and consumers which ensure producers receive good working conditions and fair prices throughout the supply chain.
- Paying fair prices to the producers which reflect the true cost of production - world market prices often do not cover even the cost of the raw materials
- Providing credit when needed to allow orders to be fulfilled and to pay premiums to be used to provide further benefits to producer groups.
- Supporting producer organisations in their social development projects - many provide health and education facilities through the Social Premium
- Promoting the empowerment of women
- Advising on product development to increase access to markets
- Encouraging environmental responsibility & sustainable projects
- Committing to long- term relationships and trading partnerships to provide stability and security rather than a short-term commercial advantage
- Campaigning to highlight the unequal system of world trade
- Transparency of business practice
- Mutual Respect with all our partners and producers
- Justice for all involved in the production and supply process, trade and sustainability not aid.
What is Ethical Trade?
Ethical trade or ethical sourcing, as it’s sometimes called, can mean different things to different people. Some use it as an umbrella term to include all types of business practices that promote socially and/or environmentally responsible trade. The Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) use it simply to refer to the responsibility of buying companies has for the rights & welfare of workers in their supply chains. Ethical Trading Initiative Base Code:
- Employment is freely chosen
- Freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining are respected.
- Working conditions are safe and hygienic
- Child labour shall not be used
- Living wages are paid
- Working hours are not excessive
- No discrimination is practiced
- Regular employment is provided
- No harsh or inhumane treatment is allowed
EcoChic passionately believes that all of these principles are vital in any trading relationship.
Your Organisation:
Your name & title: Enfant du Soleil brand from Original Peru S.A.C.
Address: Commercial Office : Av. Mansiche 1215 Trujillo, Peru
Representation Office :
Hoogoorddreef 9,
1101 BA Amsterdam Zuidoost
The Netherlands
Full contact details:
Cecilia Santisteban, Chief Operator Officer
www.enfantdusoleil.com
Does your organisation adhere to following principles?
· Fair Trade No
· Ethical Trading Yes
· Recycling No
· Use of Organic materials Yes
· Hand made production Yes
· Use of traditional skills Yes
· Use of vintage materials No
Please give details of your collection & the story behind your product range.
We are interested know how your products, materials, organisation and working practices make a difference to lives of the producers & those in your local community and brings about health and well being of local families.
Our organisation involves first of all only peruvian producers, since our main objective is to contribuite to sostainable income in the local communities both in the peruvian andes (livestock pasture ) and in the urban areas (textile and knitwear manufacturing) . 1. Our small atellier, composed by few manual knitters produced mostly handmade knitting with domestical machines in a traditional way, which is something that most of them have learned by old generations.2. The atellier staff is composed by peruvian women most of whom would otherwise be without future perspectives. Those who already know the traditional techniques of kniting train other youngers women to get experience and knowledge in knitting.3. These atelliers have special consideration to allow handicapped women to work bringing them an opportunity to develope an activity.4. Our catalogue is developed by peruvian young photografers educated through Fair Mail initiative which brings children in adolescent age a knew perspective in their lives. Most of them come from separated families and would otherwise not have opportunities of studying.5. Our products are mostly made from dye-free and degradable prime material, Baby Alpaca, which means low enviromental impact and best conditions of work without contact to chemicals. Finally Original Peru S.A.C. Is created by a young couple, namely the undersigned assisted by my husband and our staff in Peru. We all put the pieces together looking forward to get finally an excellent product to promoted through our brand Enfant du Soleil. We are continuously searching to improve in order to conquer the difficult european market.
Your organisation’s membership:
Does your organisation hold Fair Trade certification, for example, BAFTs, IFAT, SA8000?
With our current volume a certification is unaffordable but we would welcome any tips on how to achieve affordable certification.
If no, please indicate as fully as possible how you ensure an ethical trading model within your organisation:
When we created Original Peru SAC our first aim was to help people to improve their small activities, each of them as our colaborator must have been created and already working under ethical aspects. Our manufacturer with almost 35 women from the peripheral areas of the city, also employs handicapped women, mothers and others who would otherwise not have other income. They found in our atelier a decent conditions of work, working hours, pay and enviroment tools. The activities we perform through Fair Mail are fully certified. The use of natural prime material without colourants collected and processed in andean communities avoids the use of chemical industries in the process.
Please specify any other membership:
Does your organisation hold organic certification? For example, SKAL, Soil Association?
Our provider yarns are licensed by the International Alpaca Association that guarantees the use of purity of the natural fibre Alpaca and blends.They certifies also that their yarns the yarns we use are colourant free. Please specify: Do you have any plans to grow further in this area or achieve accreditation? We have plans of increasing our summer collection using Pima Cotton natural fibre and free of colourants, the producer we have already contacted accredits a Skal certification since they are also one of the most important producers of organic cotton in our country.
Use of materials within your organisation:
What materials does your organisation use to produce your collections? Baby Alpaca 100% free of colourantsBaby Alpaca 80% Silk 20% free of colourantsPima Cotton 100% free of colourants
How are your materials sourced? Are sourced by local peruvian producers in Peru.
Does your organisation use environmentally friendly materials for example: recycled materials, organic or manmade biodegrable?
Yes. We use Organic Cotton, handmade process and the natural fibres I’ve indacated, all of them biodegrable.
Does your organisation use packaging that is made from recycled or sustainable materials that are recyclable? No yet.
For how long have you worked with eco-friendly principles in mind?
I have alrealy worked sice many years ago with eco friendly principle since my background is Architecture, my architecture projects contains also the principles of the bio architecture applied in houses and restaurants.
Has your organisation taken steps to look at its carbon footprint and/or become carbon neutral?
The elimination of the coloured process and the use of manual process in almost all stages in our production process contribute to a lower carbon footprint.
Production processes
Does your company use manufacturers that follow the guidelines set out by the International Labour Organisation and respect the basic human rights of workers?
Yes all of them confirm that they follows the guidelines set out by ILO.
Is every worker involved in creating, producing and marketing your label guaranteed a Fair salary? Yes.
Do you know where your raw materials are sourced from?
Please give details: The baby alpaca is provided by andean people, specially the areas in the region called Puno, they are small communities who breed each one small quantities of animals.
How the raw materials are prepared?Please give details: Baby Alpaca is obtained from the very first shaving of the animal when it is 1 year old. The Baby Alpaca comea in 24 natural shades wich is an attractive alternative for top designs. Part of this natural material is also coloured under natural dye that guarantees a clean and a sustainable product.
How your products are manufactured? Please give details:Enfant du Soleil created the design and colours, looks for the fibre and colours will be used in producing the prototypes, then the designer has close contact with the chief of the atellier. Our products are manufactured using manual machines such Singer and handmade embroidery .
Has your organisation taken steps to source and produce locally?
Please give details: This is one of our founding criteria. Accurately promoting your brand
When we begin working with each of our partners we would like to offer you a permanent feature on our Directory under our suppliers section and a one off feature within our blog.Thereafter if you would like any future features we can discuss terms. How would you like us to initially feature and promote your brand?
We confirm that the Permanent directory and one of the blog feature woud be interesting for us. See the attachment in our e mail. For the blog we suggest to write a draft article based in the Enfant du Soleil interview made in the Internatinal RAI Television on 21th of January 2009.
Are you happy for us to publish this questionnaire on our website? Yes
If there are certain points that you would prefer us not to mention for the protection of your brand please indicate. Some of our partners prefer us to mention the country of origin of their product range but not the manufacturer which we completely understand. Please indicate the best method & contact details for ordering from your product range:
Enfant du Soleil
Hoogoorddreef 9,
1101 BA Amsterdam Zuidoost
The Netherlands
www.enfantdusoleil.com
Name: Cecilia Santisteban
Date: March 2009
Thank you for your time, we look forward to working with you.
