An Overview of the Operations of Check Imports, Inc/Baskets of Cambodia! in Cambodia

 
UPDATE OCTOBER 2007 -- In 1997 Baskets of Cambodia made a decision not to join the fair trade movement because we believe the perception of 'fair trade' is not entirely accurate. Much like the term 'organic' the definition seems a bit shifty with not enough emphasis on details and goals.  For example, I have yet to find a 'fair trade' company that proudly tells you what they pay their workers. At the same time I have seen so-called 'fair trade' companies partner with brokers who pay much less than we do, while creating products designed by Baskets of Cambodia - in effect  'fair trade' of this sort is dragging the market down.  For basketry, Baskets of Cambodia sets a base standard wage of $2.50 per day plus meals when working at our villa in Siem Reap. This is a craft that most companies will not touch because the profit margins are so low, so most basket operations are run by third world brokers who scrape the bottom for the lowest wages paid (about $1 a day or less).  Yet basketry is part of our soul and was how we began. We will continue as long as we can.
 
It is also important for many as a way to supplement their income between rice growing tasks. It means little profit for us; but it keeps these makers happy. Our purse wages are much higher because they are city based and women are buying more purses than ever before. We believe local standards and even 'fair wage' standards (a subjective equivalent wage compared to the what- we still are not sure) are being used as a way to justify paying less money to the workers. Is $150 a month city wage really too high or unrealistic for 'fair trade'? Baskets of Cambodia believes these standards should be raised at the worker level according to our ability to pay more not on the artifically low standards at the time, but 'fair trade' handicraft  items should not necessarily be more expensive unless that increase is a significant percentage of the price at the retail level - which it generally is not. At the very least, a movement based on 'fairness' should be a bit more exacting in its definition so that it is not only fair but actually encourages producers to create increasingly better returns for their humble workers. Eating soup out of a baggie is not the same as driving to Starbucks for a latte. Stay tuned. We encourage others to help promote more transparency in this movement. We would like to see wages posted for all workers in the 'fair trade' movement and actual work locations posted as well, so people can visit and see what is going on. Workers should be accessible and available for interviews. (If you come to visit our facility in Cambodia, tell my staff to take a hike and have your translator talk with any one of our makers.)
 
Another thing: Donations disguised in the sale of 'fair trade' product should be given an actual dollar value - not disguised as a percentage of profits or in cups of non-descript food or soup or whatever. Profits are whatever you choose to make them. Baskets of Cambodia is currently working on a system that would help you return 100% of whatever you want to give directly to those in need - we would provide the administration of this as our contribution.  Contact us directly if interested.

Many people in the 'fair trade' movement are decent and well, intentioned. Some are misinformed or poorly informed and some are doing genuinely good work, but it would be best if 'fair trade' does not become a mere marketing gimmick - a label that allows the curtain to come down on all the important details. These were the reasons I didn't join in 1996 and I don't see that the overall picture has changed, except that the marketing has become more intense.

It's possible we could join the 'fair trade' movement should conditions change, but we cannot display a label under current subjective conditions which are so loosely verified. This term 'organic' represented a well-intentioned effort in the beginning yet to many has strayed from its original meaning.

In any case, this should make for a very interesting discussion. In the end, I hope it will benefit primarily the workers over there, as we on this side of the curtain are doing OK. In the meantime, any question is fair game about our business, the wages and benefits we actually pay, the percentage of 'fair trade' materials in all our products, ... basically important details.
 
Call anytime! 1 866 774 8800 -- 8-5PST M-F.
 
Thanks for your interest!
Tom Yesberger
President
 
Coming soon: Our weaknesses - where we can improve.
 
 

Below: written almost 5 years ago when we first started producing our original purse styles in Cambodia.

Our Basket Operation - Siem Reap, Cambodia

Where ever possible, Baskets of Cambodia! strives to incorporate 'fair trade' ideals into its business practices. We also strive to be very transparent about our operations because no cause is adequately served merely by using a label. It helps if everyone understands the issues fairly as well. In the USA we are blessed with a good economy, good wages, and let's face it - all the necessities of life. We have the luxury of choice because our survival is generally assured. We can set goals, dreams, and turn them into reality. In Cambodia, survival is the concern of the vast majority of people. There are few if any government benefits. There are no free meals, no missions. It is my impression that everyone is concerned about basic survival for themselves and for their family. They are grateful for any opportunity that arises, even the smallest ones. Our goal since the beginning has been to provide this opportunity in the form of a viable, well-run, sustainable business so that everyone can benefit, and so that our workers can also have dreams and goals.

Every day, some 40 of our best basket makers in Cambodia (some as old as 60) are up early taking care of their families. That's because by 5:30 AM they are on their bikes riding as far as 15 hot and humid miles on their bicycles, to arrive at our offices in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The vast majority of our workers (over 400) work from home, but this is the group that gets to try out and perfect new designs, and special orders. The wage: $1.50 per 8-hour day, including lunch, about twice the average. Many insist on working weekends. Others will pay for neighbors to harvest their rice crops so that they may profit further from making baskets. Some people may suggest paying even more. But imagine - If we pay too much more, our costs go up, our prices go up, our sales may go down, and we put at risk the jobs already in place in Cambodia, not to mention the hundreds of people waiting for work. That is the reality, the context in which we do business. So what is 'fair trade'? Pay a few people more while others lose their jobs? What we do is pay the best we can given the realities of the market place. At the same time, we do whatever we can to increase our efficiency, our quality, our marketability, and hope that we can cut unnecessary costs and create a healthy demand for our products.
 
 
Our Purse Making Operation - Phnom Penh, Cambodia

We have a small but growing network of workers in Phnom Penh who specialize in our 'Tatami Style' handbags and purses. Initial indications are that we not only have a popular and financially viable product on our hands, but also that we have developed a much better business model than our closest competitors, the garment factories.

Even our beginning purse makers are able to double, triple, and sometimes exceed many times the salaries paid at the local factories. How is this done? We have no unions like the factories. Unions can be easily corrupted. Instead, we promote self-initiative, and even finance sewing machines for our workers that prefer to work at home on their own time. Once trained, our makers here will start by making $70 per month. That is again for a roughly 40 hour work week, and complete freedom. By contrast the factory workers receive somewhere between $20 and $65 a month, but to earn on the high end requires overtime, or more than 48 hours per week.

Our highest paid makers are able to make over $300 per month which is very respectable in Cambodia. Here we currently provide no other benefits, but will if the need arises. So is this 'fair trade'? I would say we are doing a good job. Our offices in Cambodia are spartan, not the mansions afforded the local Chinese factory owners, but then again we have nice houses to come home to in the west, so we shouldn't complain. This model should be interesting to watch as we grow, because rewarding individual initiative has many benefits. The workers can be compensated more fairly, and at the same time there is a certain care that people who are responsible for products from beginning to end put into their products. This is apparent in our purses and their 'mysteriously' unique appearance. I think it is because overall, the workers are quite satisfied. The challenge will come as we grow and try to avoid the mechanization of our production. Our purse workers just celebrated a successful season with a cruise on the Mekong, and with luck there will be many more.
 
 
'Tatami Style' Mat Products - Svey Rieng Province 30 Miles from Phnom Penh

This is the primary area from which we purchase our 'tatami style' mats, used for everything from exercise, picnics, to stylish home furnishings. This is the only product which we buy from brokers. That is because this product requires expertise and equipment. The dying of this material is an art that apparently takes years to master, and there are very few people who can consistently produce a product up to Western quality standards. Unfortunately, fair trade is not well understood. At Check Imports, Inc./ Baskets of Cambodia! we are working on ways to better control what our workers make, their conditions, etc. Our best guesses are that the workers make between $.75 and $1.50 per day.

There often is a problem when you bridge cultures and transplant the values of one culture to another. The problem is that it is sometimes difficult to know who is telling the truth and who is not. Our goal is to eventually have an operation of our own, like everything else we do in Cambodia, but first we have to build up enough demand to warrant the investment. In the meantime, it is obvious that things would be worse for many in Cambodia if this work was not available. So this product and the business surrounding it is still being developed. Our intent is to be completely open about our business practices, and we will continue to keep all our customers informed as this aspect is being developed.

At Check Imports, Inc./ Baskets of Cambodia!, we cannot pretend that everything is fair. Our workers work hard for very little, when compared to developed nations. We are doing what we can to add balance to a very lopsided equation.

We have intended to give you an overview of the issues encounters when dealing with fair trade. I personally don't think the label should be an end in itself. I believe that businesses should be more transparent in their practices. It is my belief that if the issue is treated openly and with intelligence, then everyone will act more responsibly. 'Fair trade’ should not just mean 'more expensive'. Know your business and it's methods, and you will get more satisfaction and value out of your 'fair trade' product.

The market exerts the most influence on what a business can and cannot do in the long run, but fair and ethical business practices can also be utilized to create successful business. This is what we are trying to do.

In the meantime, we are all grateful for the lifestyles we enjoy, and hopefully we are equally grateful for the people worldwide who work so steadfastly to hopefully someday achieve something close to what we sometimes take for granted. They have to start somewhere, but as educated and responsible consumers, we can also help pull them up a bit along the way.

Tom Yesberger
Check Imports, Inc./ Baskets of Cambodia!

 

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