Amanda Judge Interview (Part Four)
By Niki
Amanda Judge, founder of the Faire Collection, an organization that works to raise artisans from poverty through the creation of sustainable jewelry and accessories, reflects upon her overall experience.
Though the Faire Collection has only been operating for five years, the organization already works with artisans across four different countries: Ecuador, Peru, Swaziland, and Vietnam. Awed by the company’s passion and ambition for making a difference through fair trade, I felt excited to discover the thoughts of founder Amanda Judge on her overall experience.
In the five years that you have been in business, what have been your greatest achievements and most difficult challenges?
When Amanda first started the Faire Collection, her greatest goal was to “bring fair trade into the mainstream.” Not only has the Faire Collection successfully accomplished that goal, but Amanda also proudly claims that, “At this point, we’re the largest fair trade accessories company in the U.S.” To top it off, the Faire Collection has worked with “twenty of the largest retailers.” You would think that the Faire Collection has reached the pinnacle of its success, but Amanda and her team still strive to expand and to bring fair trade further into the mainstream by “working with larger retailers.” Wow.
Interestingly, Amanda reflected, “Most of our challenges were not related to fair trade necessarily, but just running business in general. It was a difficult thing to do, having never done it before.” I had expected a response along the lines of gaining the trust of the artisans, or operating a worldwide organization. However, looking back on SFAC’s interview sessions with Katy Leaky and Samantha Morshed, founders of the Leaky Collection and Pebble Child respectively, I realize that they too struggled with the business aspect of running a fair trade organization. Amanda explains that, specifically, she had to deal with “manufacturing on a different level.” But she “learned along the way,” and now the Faire Collection and its workers reap the benefits of her determination and whole-hearted efforts.
Is it harder to work with some countries than others?
Since the Faire Collection is one of the few fair trade organizations operating in multiple countries, I was curious to hear Amanda’s viewpoint on accomplishing this feat. “Well,” she noted, “they’ve all been different. We adapt the model depending on which country we’re in…Ecuador is most extensive, so it’s most difficult, but there’s also most familiarity with it. I just came back from Vietnam, so I have a lot to learn about their culture and lifestyle…but it’s just different.”
Overall, I came out from the interview with Amanda even more impressed than I was originally. She has no regrets, and would do everything similarly if she had the chance to do it all over again. The Faire Collection is true to their words - “With one life to live, we intend to make the most of it and inspire you to do the same.”
Hi, I’m Niki, and I’m an intern this summer at Shopping for a Change! I’m a rising junior in high school, with a passion for singing and playing the piano. So far, I’ve had a great experience working, learning about marketing, reading inspiring stories, conducting interviews, and now blog-writing. Hope you enjoyed reading the installments of the interview!
Fair Trade Accessories
Fair trade purses and handbags
