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Boutiko celebrates 1st year’s trading 18.11.08
One Less Plastic Bag
Beautiful on-line ethical gift store Boutiko is set to find out whether they have won a coveted Green Award the week after their official first birthday. Boutiko has been shortlisted along with four other ethical companies for the Best Fair Trade Company category of the awards, which are being run by Green England.
Since last November, Boutiko has been providing unique and exquisite gift solutions for all sorts of occasions: weddings, birthdays, christenings, Christmas and pure present giving for fun! The gifts are all individually sourced and most are hand-made from sustainable materials, with many of them originating from small, family-run fair trade companies around the world. It is for this reason that the company has been shortlisted for the Awards, due to be judged on 8th December.
Says proprietor Tara Leaver, “I am delighted that our first year in business coincides with the great honour of being picked for the Green Awards shortlist. Our commitment to ensuring all the gifts on the site come from people working in fair trade conditions is central to our ethos. As well as providing quirky gifts for all tastes, we show that even the special act of present giving must consider ethical and environmental issues. Choosing a gift is all the more special when the producer of it has made a living in good working conditions, and the gift itself does not have a detrimental effect upon the environment.”
Many of Boutiko’s gifts are made from recycled materials, including jewellery made from vintage glass beads, clocks crafted from disposable coffee cups, doorstops made from recycled fabric and the One Less Plastic Bag, which is handmade from vintage Indian saris! Although incredibly light, the bags will hold up to 2kg, and are machine washable. Every bag is hand made under fair trade conditions, and each one is unique, with a colour or pattern to suit everyone’s taste, and best of all it means one less plastic bag!
Other items on the Boutiko site are made from sustainable materials, including wooden toys and jigsaws made from rubber wood harvested from previously derelict plantations.
Says Tara, “Not only are the gifts unique because of their sustainability, but the fact that most of them are handmade means they have individual quirks. We can even request for bespoke jewellery items made to order, which helps the creators to increase their trade and output in a truly special way.”
Vote for Boutiko in the Green England Awards until 28 November, here: http://www.green-england.co.uk/greenawards
Related links
See what’s on offer in the Boutiko store for this Christmas at www.boutiko.co.uk – save yourself the nightmare of crowded shops and busy carparks, order online and benefit from free giftwrapping and next day delivery as standard.
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