Vendor Spotlight: Seeds to Sew
Seeds to Sew is a Fair Trade Federation member, nonprofit organization based in NJ that works to help women and girls in rural Kenya gain the skills and education they need to become independent through the products they sell.
They offer handmade, functional, sustainable, eco-friendly gifts such as gift-wrap bags, shopping totes, beaded and wooden bowls, spoons and bracelets. They also sell ornaments, dolls and figurines made from all-natural, sustainably sourced materials. All items are eco-friendly, and made by seamstresses in rural Kenya. The shopping totes are crafted from eye-catching Kenyan fabrics and make high quality gifts that will last a lifetime.
They also sell upcycled feed bags made into shopping totes and zipper pouches by student volunteers, the sale of which funds the school fees for program participants in rural Kenya where many participants live on less than a dollar a day.
From humble beginnings…
Operations Manager, Nina Moukova said Seeds to Sew was founded in 2011 because Nina’s colleague wanted to initiate a sewing program that would provide independence to women and young girls in need. Although much of the work is done remotely from the United States, thanks to the team’s program manager, there is always someone on the ground in Kenya to make sure things are running smoothly and properly. She ensures that the women are paid for the products they make, providing an income that more than covers the cost of supplies. The balance of any profit goes into an account that funds the education of the family’s children. The program provides a layer of transparency by making tuition payments directly to the schools on the girls’ behalf, ensuring that all students receive the education their hard work has paid for.
“We found out the hard way that if we give the cash to the moms, sometimes the fathers take it and the girls don’t go to school,” Nina said.
Agnes’ success story
The inspiration for the program began with Agnes, a young girl who was destined to be circumcised and married at 12 years old. Agnes was not having it, and flat out refused. As a result, her father left the family without any resources, and Agnes resorted to making and selling bracelets in hopes that she might be able to fund her high school tuition.
“We said [to Agnes], keep making the bracelets, and maybe if we sell them you can go to school,” Nina said.
The plan worked, and so began the Seeds to Sew program.
As a result, Agnes was able to finish high school with all of her fees completely covered: uniform, textbooks, shoes and anything else she needed. Upon graduation, she wanted to continue her education, and although the team couldn’t imagine her selling enough to fund University tuition, the program continued to assist by helping her apply for loans and facilitating a sponsor. They were successful, and when Agnes graduates this December, she will be an elementary school teacher.
A program that keeps giving back
Agnes has continued to give back to her community by volunteering throughout her high school and college career. When the women in her community were encouraged to start sewing uniforms, they declined, saying they could not take and compute the measurements required to make the clothes. Agnes did not hesitate. She stepped in and bought a blackboard and other supplies, and turned the sewing shop into a classroom. She taught the seamstresses to read and write and calculate, and now they are making school uniforms to improve the opportunities for young girls in Kenya.
“This [education] will make them independent of our program,” Nina said. “This is our goal, to support them so they are independent. To establish them and get a good ground for a good future and the possibility to provide a better life for their family.”
Together with the Seeds to Sew program manager, Agnes also underwent training through Street Business School to help teach women in the street how to become entrepreneurs. The beauty of Street Business School is that it can literally be done on the streets, without any tools or supplies. Women gather in a circle, and the facilitator/teacher provides guidance, education and answers questions. They help the women understand how to take care of their finances independently, and how to do something that they perhaps always wanted to do but never could by providing resources and support.
“[We are] encouraging them to think outside the box and push their boundaries,” Nina said.
In addition to finding their wares at the farmers market, Seeds to Sew sells their one-of-a-kind handmade items on their website and their storefront. They are finding increasingly more traction in the wholesale business locally and worldwide with resale partners in gift shops and other locations throughout the U.S. and Europe. If you know of a store that might be interested in reselling Seeds to Sew products, please contact them through their website, where consumers can also make individual purchases.
Visit Seeds to Sew online at https://seedstosew.org/