Ethical Skin and Fair Trade.

As you know, Peau-Ethique has existed since 2004, and fair trade was an obvious choice. We won't re-explain fair trade; we've already covered it here. However, we will give you our perspective on our fair trade practices. To date, we have two collaborations with certified workshops: in Peru and India (for the baby collections). Initially, fair trade was truly a kind of standard. Launching a brand without it being fair trade was unthinkable. Many brands started in this niche, but few have survived. We don't have all the answers as to why, but it's probably because people lost interest in this mode of consumption in favor of more local options. We cannot carry all the world's misery on our shoulders (as consumers), but we can act to remedy it a little (as brands). Today, hardly anyone communicates about the fair trade aspect of their product. This is because it has quite a negative connotation. One immediately imagines a poncho, roots. Far from the image of current fashion. Not false; we prioritize fashion, the rest is a bonus. During a trip to Peru, Cathy (the brand's founder) met two associations, and it was an immediate match. To put it in context, this was in 2009. There was a strong trend for fair trade in our consumption habits; we sought to consume more fairly and better. So, we didn't want to do what everyone else was doing (i.e., t-shirts), so we had a rather unique collaboration! We decided to make hand-knitted organic cotton comforters in natural colors. It was an immediate success. So much so that we are referenced in a chain of organic stores. The association we work with is based in Lima. It employs women who can work from home. Often single-parent families, this association allows them to live with dignity. Because that is the goal of fair trade: not to be exploited. In 2021, I see almost no brands talking about fair trade in their communication, even though it is at the heart of our operations. I don't really have an answer for this change in editorial line among my colleagues; perhaps it's an assumed fact that products are produced cleanly. Can we not dissociate organic from fair production? To be honest, even we no longer communicate about it. It's probably a shame because there is still work to be done, new supply chains to develop... Or maybe for consumers, fair trade only rhymes with food?