a word from our founder
Welcome to our first Sustainability Report! It’s been quite an exciting journey
since we began Handmade Expressions eight years ago. As we’ve grown, we’ve given great consideration to minimizing our impacts along the way, and now we’ve applied these lessons into a comprehensive sustainability strategy. Whether you’re new to Handmade Expressions or a longstanding partner, I’m excited to share with you our findings and hope this inspires you to talk about sustainability in more personal, meaningful ways with your customers.
Handmade Expressions sees sustainability as a way of life, not an end goal. As a
social entrepreneurship, doing good for people and the planet is our business mission. Fair trade principles are integrated with a deeper concern for the environment in our efforts to create inspired products and connect with our partners. Community is what motivates us — we foster direct personal relationships with artisans in India and with retail partners across North America.
In this report you will learn about our values, philosophy and initiatives to
affect positive change with people, the planet and our products. We also include case studies that highlight specific actions and projects that bring our values to life.
While we recognize there is much still to do to empower artisans, engage our
community and reduce our environmental footprint, I am proud of what our small team of passionate individuals in the US and India have been able to accomplish. Sustainability is our path, our way of doing business, and I invite you to join in our journey as we continue working toward positive change. Kind Regards,
Manish Gupta Founder and Director of Handmade Expressions
1