SERRV: Fair trade catalog features Haiti front and center

Madison, Wis. – When the January earthquake hit Haiti, SERRV, a nonprofit organization that sells fairly traded handcrafts from 36 countries, was ready to print 350,000 catalogs and needed to make a decision. “Do we stay with or walk away from the design choice made last year to feature Haitian recycled metal art pieces on the front and back covers of our Spring/Summer 2010 Catalog,” said Serena Sato, marketing manager for SERRV.

* Having worked with a group of artisans through Comité Artisanal Haitien (CAH) in Haiti for more than 30 years, SERRV recognized the need to promote crafts from the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. In Haiti, 80% of the population lives under the poverty line and the average income is only a few hundred dollars per year.

* In January 2010, after the earthquake hit, the homes and workshops of many artisans had collapsed. Tools and materials to create handcrafts were lost. However, the director of CAH, Gisèle Fleurant, reported that the catalog’s showcased art pieces were complete and undamaged, but still in Port-au-Prince. It was uncertain how long it would take before CAH could ship them.

“It was a risky business decision to put unavailable product on the front of the catalog,” Serena Sato said. “But in the end, we knew this was the right thing to do for the artisans in Haiti. Now more than ever we need to promote their products so they can work and provide for their families. Last week we were happy to hear that the order should ship soon.”

* SERRV didn’t just keep Haiti as a major focus of the catalog. Staff purchased and shipped supplies requested by the Haitian artisans, including tents, towels, flashlights, pasta and rice. The organization continues to collect donations for rebuilding efforts, and a staff member is on the ground in Haiti to assess the critical future needs of CAH so the artisans’ lives can return to normal as soon as possible.

To learn more about SERRV’s work in Haiti, please visit http://www.serrv.org or contact Jessica King at jessicak@serrv.org or 1.888.243.4423.

Cheryl Musch, SERRV’s director of international development, will be available for interviews starting Feb. 25, after she returns from Haiti.