Expanding into the Green Conference and Corporate Gift Marketplace

Corporations have limited marketing dollars to spend on swag gifts, corporate give aways or conference meeting bags.  In the past, big ticket and name brands were sought after.  However, the industry is changing.  Companies want to give something that represents not only their value system but also philanthropic efforts.  They are seeking eco friendly products and socially conscious messages.


We recently took our conference bag and iPad zip sleeve to the Green Meeting Marketing Conference in Chicago.  The organizers of the conference loved the uniqueness of of the material and message that the PR Team selected items to appear on the Chicago CBS Morning Show April 2013.  Here is a picture of the segment producer and the spokesperson for GMIC.




eco:
Our conference bags are made of recycled netting material formerly used in the industry of fishing and construction in Asia.  The net that does not meet industry standards is sold off as faulty at local markets.

fair trade:
As members of the Fair Trade Federation, we support over 100 artisans through our partnership with Smateria.  On average, five meals are provided through the sale of one product.

Now that is giving a meaningful gift that gives back.  An image that corporations are proud to support.

The cost of cheap labor

Do you know where your clothes are made?  How they are made?  If they are cheap....are they cheap at someone else's expense.

You might have heard of the building collapse last week that killed over 1,100 people in Bangladesh.  Did you also hear of a fire last fall that killed 112 workers.  This is from the NYTimes:

'The Nov. 24 fire at the Tazreen Fashions factory, where workers were making clothes for global retailers like Walmart and Sears, has focused attention on the unsafe work conditions and low wages at many garment factories in Bangladesh, the No. 2 exporter of apparel after China. The fire also has exposed flaws in the system that monitors the industry’s global supply chain: Walmart and Sears say they had no idea their apparel was being made there.'

Many factory workers would rather pay $1,200 per 'body' as a fine if a tragedy occurs than adhere to safety standards.  One reason why... large retailers push them down so much on price that they are forced to cut corners.  So think twice the next time you buy cheap.... is the product cheap at what cost.  

Buy fair trade... make a change.  


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/18/world/asia/bangladesh-factory-fire-caused-by-gross-negligence.html?_r=0

Fashionable fair trade colors for 2013!

Looking for the fashionable color this spring.  Every year Pantone comes out with an accent color of the year.  In 2013 they picked Emerald Green.  Here are some selections of fair trade wallets, bags and purses from five ACCESSORIES that can help to accent your wardrobe.

Our classic messenger bag is a perfect unisex bag designed to carry a 13.5 inch computer.  

One of our best selling items is the wallet with key chain designed to carry your iPhone.  An easy way to accent with green.  

Celebrating Earth Day at five ACCESSORIES

Earth Day makes you think of using less and recycling more to help protect our environment.  At five ACCESSORIES, our core goal is to use recycled materials for our bags.  Here is a list of the reused materials:


Recycled Netting 

Netting material intended for use in the fishing and construction industries that has holes and rips in it is sold off at local markets. We recycle it for use in our bags.

Repurposed Motorcycle Seats

Over 80% of the population uses motorcycles. We repurpose the seats to make our purses.

Reused Black Plastic Bags

Plastic bags are cut, heated and crocheted into sharp looking accessories. 

Celebrating the Khmer New Year with our Cambodian Artisan Partners

The Khmer New Year is celebrated in Cambodia starting on April 13th.  Our artisan partners will have the entire week off through April 22nd to celebrate this majestical time.  The holiday usually signifies the end of the harvesting season, when farmers enjoy the fruits of their labor before the rainy season begins.  For an insight into the 2013 Khmer Song, please view the following YouTube Video.  

We are proud to support the traditions and value of the country where our goods are produced.  For more information about Cambodia and our fair trade labor practices please visit our website.

The beginning of a business inspired from a honeymoon trip around the world.

The founders of five ACCESSORIES, Christine Hutchison and her husband traveled to Bali in 2005. While there they met a Balinese man, I Make Kichen,  who told them how a gift of $5 a month from an American couple who visited Bali impacted his life in a big way. This small contribution empowered him to stay in school and improve his English, eventually allowing him to send his kids to college, proving that $5 can empower a parent and a family.

Over six years later, Christine brings the story from Bali into fair trade products from Cambodia.  Through her partnership with Smateria, she helps to support over 100 artisans from Phnom Penh, Cambodia .  Believing that the products made under fair trade labor practices empowers people by teaching them viable working skills is the surest way to fight global poverty.  Bringing the story from their honeymoon full circle and showing how just a small amount, even as little as five dollars, can have a change on someone’s life.  

As wedding season approaches, we remember the power of weddings and honeymoons to bring people together in new and unexpected positive ways! Our Must Have Clutch is perfect for any bridesmaid. An adjustable and removable strap can be worn as a wristlet or off the shoulder. Shot silk is handmade from Cambodia with design by La Vie Devant Soie. Who knows what will happen when a bridesmaid with our bright and colorful clutch shares her love for the bride with the beauty of five ACCESSORIES!

Global Activism Expo, WBEZ

Last year our founder, Christine Hutchison, had the honor of being interviewed by Jerome McDonnell on NPR's Worldview.  We discussed how we have grown our partnership with Smateria, a fair trade group in Cambodia, over the past four years to now offer stylish and fashion forward bags that are also using sustainable material in over 200 national stores.  We have seen Smateria grown from 15 artisans to over 100 artisans now offering a daycare center and school that is a free benefit to our artisans children.  

This Saturday, come meet Jerome McDonnell and Barbara Ramsey of WBEZ at the 6th Annual Global Activism Expo in Chicago.  The event will take place from at the UIC Forum, 725 W Roosevelt,  from noon to 6 pm.  Admission is free.   five ACCESSORIES will be among 100 socially conscious organizations making a global impact. Come support and learn how you can help make a difference in someone's life.  Through the purchase of one laptop sleeve, we are able to provide five meals to the children of our daycare center.  

The Face Behind Your Fashion Accessory

The eco-friendly purse or organic piece of clothing you just bought, have you ever  really wondered where it originated?  Who made it? Or how they made it?  Well, at five ACCESSORIES, fair trade is fundamental to everything we do. We believe in knowing 'what's in your bag' or  ' who made your bag'.  Treating people fairly is the basis of our business and our primary purpose for doing business.  

Featured here is Sophea. She has been working with our Cambodia partners, Smateria, since 2005.  She started without any tailoring experience whatsoever. She was hired as a cleaner of recycled tetrapak fruit juice and milk boxes. Just a few months later she asked to try working as a basic tailor. Fast forward to 2013, eight years later,  she is currently the chief of Smateria's wallets production room. Wallets are technically the most difficult product to sew. (five currently carries two of those recycled wallets.)

This hardworking wife and mother of two, was unemployed prior to working with Smateria and her husband has always worked as a moto taxi driver. She is originally from the country side and recently bought her own house in her homeland - a big investment for her children and a safe place for her and her husband to retire to one day.

Sophea is just one face behind our Cambodian products whom we are helping. The five brand is not only about eco friendly handbags, it is about people.

Resource: Smateria

As you know, Giving Back is part of our mission statement.

Several of the women employed in our program in Cambodia have been victims of human trafficking and sex slavery. Most of you are probably aware that human trafficking is a global problem that is embedded in a web of poverty, political transition, inadequate female education and economic opportunity and the low value placed on women and children. The International Organization for Migration estimates as many as 4 million people are trafficked each year, a quarter of which are children. Trafficking is a $10 billion dollar a year business. In Asia, women and children are trafficked into prostitution and forced labor within their own countries as well as overseas.

Our eco fashion bags and accessories are handmade by Smateria in Phnom Phem, Cambodia. All of Smateria's products are handmade by Cambodian craftsman and women employed in line with fair trade principles. The company currently employs over 85 permanent staff and 15 outsourced families.

Buy locally and support globally by purchasing one of our sustainable bags and fair trade totes using recycled mosquito netting from Cambodia partners Smateria.

Top holiday tech gift ideas

Still thinking of what to get everyone on your list.  Consider:

Gift for the iPad:  Our shoulder bag made from recycled netting.  The durable yet light weight bag is padded and had five pockets.  Our best seller is the copper, olive and deep purple.

Gift for the iPhone:   Our wallet with a zipper pocket is designed to fit the iPhone.  With an outside pocket for your bus pass or credit cards and key ring, it is the perfect items to carry around the college campus or to and from the water cooler at work.  Best selling colors are

Gift for the e-reader:   Looking for a bag that just fits your kindly fire?  Our new hip bag is designed to be worn three ways:  cross body, over the shoulder or around the hip.  With an outside zipper pocket and inside pocket for your phone, this has been one of our best selling size bags this season.

Check out more styles at www.fiveaccessories.com