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In a world of mass production, the touch of the hand has value.
— Docey Lewis, International Design Consultant, Textile Innovator

Training & Resources / Resources

Welcome to our online resource section. Here you will find a wide array of useful and informative resources pertaining to the craft sector.

CRAFT SECTOR ORGANIZATIONS

Links to our partners and other players in the international craft sector:


  • Africancraft

    AfricanCraft is a portal packed with links and descriptions of African artisans, shops, and contacts. Information comes from many African sources as well as from people with a longtime connection with African art and artisans.


  • Bosnian Handcraft

    Non-profit organization of Bosnian women knitters. Most are widows who have lost homes and lands during the recent civil strife and their products are their only livelihood.


  • Central Asia Craft Support Association

    As a membership based non governmental organization, the Central Asian Crafts Support Association (CACSA) serves as an umbrella for its over 60 members craft development centers and NGOs from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, by providing communication links, marketing support, product development training, sales opportunities, and other needed services.


  • Craft Link

    Non-profit organization based in Hanoi that works with craftspeople throughout Vietnam and especially with marginalized traditional Hill Tribe people. Craft Link provides marketing assistance and training.


  • Crafts Council of India

    Long-established non-profit organization serving craftspeople throughout India


  • Craft Revival Trust

    The Craft Revival Trust, established in 1999, is a nonprofit which is endeavoring to build an information and knowledge infrastructure for the Folk Arts, Crafts and Textiles.


  • Cross Cultural Collaborative

    Cross Cultural Collaborative, started by Ellie Schimelman, a Boston-based artist and teacher, offers workshops in Ghanaian arts at the ABA center near Accra, as well as travel in Ghana through ABA Tours. http://www.abatours.com/


  • Fabrica Social

    Fabrica Social is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization based in Mexico City that helps market products made by women artisans. Their emphasis is on shared information and they have a social, anthropological and gender focus. They are closely affiliated with young designers in Amsterdam and represented by TreeHouse in Brooklyn, New York and they are supporters of Dzitnup, an ATA grantee, Fall 2007.


  • Fabrica Social

    Fabrica Social is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization based in Mexico City that helps market products made by women artisans. Their emphasis is on shared information and they have a social, anthropological and gender focus. They are closely affiliated with young designers in Amsterdam and represented by TreeHouse in Brooklyn, New York and they are supporters of Dzitnup, an ATA grantee, Fall 2007.


  • Fair Trade Federation

    The Fair Trade Federation (FTF) is the trade association that strengthens and promotes North American organizations fully committed to fair trade. The Federation is part of the global fair trade movement, building equitable and sustainable trading partnerships and creating opportunities to alleviate poverty.


  • FUDECA, Fundación de Artesanos Ecuatorianos

    Lindblad's Special Expeditions is a travel firm like no other. Deeply involved with conservation, culture and the people who live where their ships visit, Sven-Olaf Lindblad recently established FUDECA (Fundacion de Artesanos Ecuatorianos) to involve the artisans in the Galapagos in trade with visitors. FUDECA has helped with product development and merchandising for Reflections, a first class gallery in the harbor town of Puerto Ayora. Profits from the gallery go to develop further skills and opportunities for the islanders.


  • Hagar International

    Hagar International is a Swiss-based Christian organization that is committed to individualized and long-term assistance to its beneficiaries, advocating the strategic use of the social enterprise model as a tool for social rehabilitation and economic empowerment.


  • IFAT

    IFAT is a network of more than 350 Fair Trade Organizations in 70 countries. Their mission is to improve the livelihoods and well being of disadvantaged producers by linking and promoting Fair Trade Organizations, and speaking out for greater justice in world trade.


  • Kala Raksha

    Kala Raksha Trust, a grassroots social enterprise, is dedicated to preservation of traditional arts. Comprising artisans, community members, and experts in the fields of art, design and museums, Kala Raksha was founded on artisan initiative in 1993 in the desert region Kutch, in India.


  • Lotus by League of Artisans

    The League is a social venture and was started by an ATA colleague, New York-based financier Chandrika Tandon as a way to "give back". League of Artisans mission is to create a unifying platform to build sustainable business enterprises in the craft sector in India.


  • MarketPlace: Handwork of India

    Non-profit, fair trade organization working with women artisan cooperatives on informal but stylish fashion. Based in Illinois, two catalogs yearly and Internet sales.


  • NOVICA

    NOVICA unites you with more than 2,000 extraordinary master artists around the world to purchase directly from their online store. Read about their lives, explore their fascinating cultures, and select from more than 20,000 handcrafted works of art.


  • One Shared World

    Aid to Artisans has formed a partnership with One Shared World, a new campaign to raise awareness and generate dialogue about global poverty and what America is doing to tackle it.


  • Putumayo World Music

    Putumayo World Music supports Aid to Artisans and other non-profit organizations doing good work for communities in the regions where its music originates.


  • Rugmark Foundation

    Non-profit advocacy organization, Washington-based, whose mission is to prevent the abuse of child labor in rug manufacture in India, Pakistan and Nepal.


  • Santa Fe Folk Art Market

    The Santa Fe International Folk Art Market is the largest international folk art market in the world, and their success led to Santa Fe's designation as a UNESCO City of Folk Art, the first U.S. city named to UNESCO's prestigious Creative Cities Network.


  • Self-Employed Women's Association

    Non-profit women's trade union, based in Ahmedabad, India with thousands of members, many of them craftswomen.


  • Serrv

    Non-profit, fair trade retail and catalog enterprise based in Madison, Wisconsin.


  • Ten Thousand Villages

    Fair trade retail stores throughout the U.S. and website offering traditional handcrafts from around the world.


  • Traidcraft

    Traidcraft's mission is to fight poverty through trade, practicing and promoting approaches to trade that help poor people in developing countries transform their lives.


  • World Craft Council

    World Craft Council is an organization attached to UNESCO that for over 40 years have worked for the development of craft and with members from all over the world. The WCC is organized in five regions: Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America.


  • WorldofGood.com

    WorldofGood.com by eBay is the world's first online marketplace to convene thousands of People Positive and Eco Positive sellers and products all in one place, empowering you to shop in ways that align with your personal values. Aid to Artisans is a Trust Provider on this marketplace.


U.S. MARKET STATISTICS

Reports on home décor and other U.S. markets


TRENDS

Keep updated on U.S. home décor, fashion and luxury markets and trends in color, design and lifestyles.


  • Trendwatching

    General lifestyle trends


  • Springwise

    Trends in all industries


  • Fashion Trendsetter

    Fashion Trends


  • Style.com

    Fashion, Color, and Style Trends


  • Dutchboy Paint

    Color Trends, also helpful for putting together color palettes for product design


  • LOHAS Market Information

    LOHAS is an acronym for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability, a market segment focused on health and fitness, the environment, personal development, sustainable living, and social justice.


  • TreeHugger

    Information about the Green and Environmentally Responsible market


COSTING YOUR CRAFT PRODUCT

EXPORTING REGULATIONS

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

AID TO ARTISANS' PUBLICATIONS

You can purchase the various books we have published and have free online access to all of our other publications, including our magazine and newsletters.


RECOMMENDED READING

  • A listing of books we recommend for anyone who wants to learn more about our industry. These books cover a wide variety of topics from textiles to market trends.


GENERAL TOPICS

  • Small Business Association

    Step-by-Step guide to writing a business plan


  • MPlans.com

    Sample marketing plans and marketing plan outline


  • Score

    Templates for businesses and nonprofits ranging from business plans to balance sheets