I believe that my home is my mission field to make the world a better place. When I taught school, I believed my job was my mission field. I now have a business from home that I run while investing time and energy into my daughter and the business allows me to help people outside my four walls in a profound way. That’s why I believe in Trades of Hope and wrote this to share with you.

Here Comes Teacher Mode With the 5Ws and the H…

WHO: Trades of Hope is a Direct Sales company that was started by four women (two mothers and their daughters) who wanted to stamp out poverty. Between the four of them they had experience in business, missions, photography, and art and together they have become a dynamic team of world changing entrepreneurs. Now several thousand Compassionate Entrepreneurs are selling items made by artisans in 15 countries who are empowering themselves out of poverty.

The women we are buying from and helping are not looking for handouts, they are looking for opportunity. We are able to pay them a living wage for the things they create and they are able to live a better life. Now they have food, shelter, and can send their kids to school! These are brave, hardworking, talented women who make beautiful things that we can buy in good conscience knowing that our purchases are being used to pay them fairly.

As a compassionate entrepreneur, I can help these women with their business while running my business. I can do this from home while I educate my daughter and I can set my own schedule. This is a flexible business that reaps the rewards of knowing that women are helping women make the world better.

WHAT: What are the problems these women face? Women in poverty around the world live in areas where there aren’t many jobs available, they are paid less, and men get preference. Where people are poor and hungry, they need to do whatever they can to survive. The sad reality is that their desperation is exploited through sweat shops, slave labor, and sex trafficking. We shop at department stores all the time not knowing where the products come from. By the time the company pays for shipping, maintaining electricity and rental space, and shops competitively overseas, the person who made the item on the shelf will have only been paid a small fraction of that ticket price.

What are we doing to help? We are buying directly and as a direct sales company and keeping overhead prices low. Our home team pays these women 2-6 times what they would make selling the same items in their local community. They pay them what they need to live on based on this criteria: “How long does the item take to make? How much money do you need to make in order to feed your household, have shelter, clean water, and send your kids to school?” You can be sure it’s getting done just like they say because they are Fair Trade Certified meaning they are held accountable for their claims and indeed paying fairly. (Click HERE for Fair Trade Video)

What sort of accessories do these women make? Jewelry, Scarves, Handbags, Journals, Stationary, Toiletries, Home Décor, Wallets, and Christmas Ornaments. Whatever your style, from simplistic to bold, you can find something you like! Trades of Hope is also a great resource for meaningful gift giving.

WHEN: You can shop when you’re invited to a party, or directly through a compassionate entrepreneur’s website anytime, or get some free and half priced treasures when you host your own party. It’s our way of saying, “Thank you for sharing this mission!”

WHERE: Where do we find our artisans? Many of them are connected to us through missionary groups and non-profit organizations that are stationed there in their communities helping these people full time. The number of groups and people within the groups we work with is correlated roughly with how many compassionate entrepreneurs are signed up to help them with their business. We have artisans in India, Peru, Bangladesh, Jordan, Haiti, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Vietnam, the United States, the Philippines, Uganda, and other places as well.

WHY: Why did I chose to be a compassionate entrepreneur? My career was teaching school until I had my daughter. I’m a super attached mommy. I didn’t put her down hardly ever for her first few months of life. I didn’t get a babysitter. I guess since that’s how I was raised that was how I imagined raising her. So I wanted to do something that I could do from home, as a stay at home mom, during this season of my life. The reasons I chose Trades of Hope was because:

1. My heart has tugged for creative solutions to the world’s problems. I love the way Trades of Hope creates business opportunity for people in difficult situations and makes a lasting impact.
2. I knew that if I were to become weary trying to “make sales” I would have a better reason than myself to keep doing it. Knowing that I can help someone else make money for their family is very motivating.
3. I needed flexibility if I was going to try to earn any income during my stay at home mom season. Sometimes we need to travel. Other times I don’t leave the house more than once a week. My husband’s career keeps us on our toes and things can change from one minute to the next, but I can take this business with me! I can set my hours! Flexibility is empowering!

HOW: How can we help our artisans? By Shopping, Hosting, and Joining! Every time you purchase fair trade items, you are contributing to the solutions to trafficking, slavery, malnutrition, and poor education. When you contribute to these solutions, you are also helping break the cycle of poverty for these families because when their kids go to school, they get more opportunities in life.

You can help even more by hosting! A party can be on Facebook, or in your home, or at a restaurant or coffee shop. Hosting helps spread the word and gives more people the opportunity to shop and help with the solution. Also when you host, you can qualify for free and half priced items! The promotions and hostess rewards we give are cut from our own expenses, not the artisan’s. We do this as a thank you gift to our customers for helping us make connections.

Then if you want to help EVEN MORE, you can join Trades of Hope too. This is a sisterhood, not a competition. If you were to see our Compassionate Entrepreneur Facebook page, you’d see helps and encouragement every day. We want everyone to succeed because when someone on our team succeeds, the mission is being accomplished.

This home business is a major part of my home “mission field.” I can’t realistically pick up and go on a mission trip at this stage in my life, but I can support business that helps widows, children, and the poor. You can too by joining, hosting, or shopping Trades of Hope.

If you have questions about joining or hosting a party with a purpose, please contact me or a CE near you!