LAURA ASHLEYShop Online

Many of us marvel at those inspirational beings who opted for the ‘career with a cause’ path: a job that has meaning, one that actually makes a tangible difference. Rachel Hearson’s role as Business Development Manager ticks all these boxes and more. Having met Rachel to discuss Laura Ashley’s on-going support of Fairtrade including the sale of our popular Fairtrade cotton t-shirts (our essential wardrobe staple) we felt impelled to dig deeper and get an insiders’ peek into the rewards of having a job for the greater good….

 

For those who aren’t fully up to speed with the work of Fairtrade please give us a quick snapshot of the organisation and your efforts to transform trading structures and better working conditions?

Fairtrade is all about helping poor farmers to work their way out of poverty by paying them a fairer price for the products they produce. So you know that when you choose a product carrying the Fairtrade mark be it coffee, tea, a banana, chocolate bar, flowers or a t-shirt, the producer of the raw commodity has been paid fairly and they have received an extra amount on top to invest in community projects.

Our role at the Fairtrade Foundation is essentially to grow the market so producers can sell more under Fairtrade terms. We link producers with companies so retailers and brands can licence products carrying the Fairtrade Mark.

Another part of our role is to raise public awareness about Fairtrade – we have amazing supporters all round the country with over 520 Fairtrade towns, 500 schools (5000 currently applying) 150 universities and nearly 7000 faith groups all campaigning for better trade conditions and a fairer world.

Malawi Sukambizi – photograph by Anette Kay

 

Tell us about your typical day in the office at Fairtrade

My day starts with a battle to get to the coffee machine – since we’ve had a new high tech coffee machine there’s intense competition to make your Fairtrade latte’s in house!  On my way to my desk I have to dodge ‘sugar mountain’ and the various samples of chocolate bars from Divine, Cadburys or Green & Blacks left lying around…I may ignore them initially but I know where they are for later…I work as part of the commercial team at the Foundation and we share stories, challenges and successes around the various products we deal with. Our team deals with Fairtrade cotton, gold and cosmetics – we call ourselves the ‘lifestyle’ team. My day varies enormously – sometimes I’m talking to a major retailer about opportunities for them to grow their Fairtrade product offering, sometimes it’s responding to a journalist’s questions about why we need Fairtrade cotton, sometimes I’m studying cotton prices or supply chains, other times I’m talking to a producer in Mali about market opportunities for their cotton

 

Do you travel much with your job? Tell us about the most touching/rewarding Fairtrade story that you have witnessed or improved?

I have been lucky enough to be able to visit cotton farmers in both Senegal and Mali in West Africa and to see first hand the difference that Fairtrade is making to people’s lives. Probably the most memorable moment was visiting a maternal medical centre in Mali, a small but vitally important building in the village which the cooperative had paid for with the extra money and premium they had earned from selling their cotton as Fairtrade. They had employed a trained mid-wife who proudly admitted to us that since she had been there she had been able to save the lives of both mothers and their babies. Previously if a pregnant woman from the village needed medical attention or was ready to give birth, she would have to walk for 25 kilometres along a dirt road and on many occasions she would lose the baby. It makes you realise how much we take for granted and how, by buying Fairtrade products, we can really make life changing differences to people who live in poverty.

Maternal Health Clinic: photograph by Trevor Leighton

 

How did you come to work for Fairtrade and what drew you to work for them?

I had been working for just over 20 years in the textile industry as a product manager and in December 2004 I was involved in the Asian Tsunami and was very lucky to survive. This proved to be a life changing moment. I came away feeling that I had been spared for a reason and that I had been put on this earth to do something good. I had always admired Fairtrade and I watched with interest as Fairtrade cotton was launched in 2005. I started volunteering for Fairtrade and soon after got a job in the commercial team as a business development manager for cotton. It’s incredibly interesting to be on the ‘other side’ – I never even thought about the fact that there was a cotton farmer at the very bottom of the long and complex cotton supply chain who is often the forgotten link in the chain.

 

Your absolute essential Fairtrade beauty product?

I’m just loving the range of lipsticks from Essential Care – in particular the rich red Raspberry Coulis colour. It’s wonderfully moisturizing and looks amazing. It contains Fairtrade shea butter from Ghana as well as organic plant oils and jojoba butter  – just another reason to smile!

 

We see you do some delicious Fairtrade recipes on your website? Which one do you recommend and where is best to source Fairtrade food?

There are so many Fairtrade products out there now it’s difficult to choose but the Lime and Ginger cheesecake on Traidcraft’s website is a firm favourite! I know that our executive director, Harriet Lamb also swears by it for her dinner parties.

 

You worked with fashion photographer Trevor Leighton to mark Fairtrade Cotton’s fifth anniversary, what was he like to work with and how important is it that high profile figures and brands support the organisation?

Trevor is a great supporter of Fairtrade and has been since the launch of Fairtrade cotton. He’s also great fun to work with – he just knows how to get the best out of people. In Mali it was like working with the pied piper – the kids just loved his energy and sense of humour and followed him everywhere. His brief for the fashion shoot which we did last year with a number of celebrities (Lisa Snowdon, Laura Bailey, Lisa Butcher) was to make Fairtrade cotton look beautiful – he did this in a really creative and stylish way which got us lots of good PR.

Lisa Snowdon by Trevor Leighton

 

Tell us a bit more about Fairtrade Fortnight 2012 and what we can expect?

Fairtrade in the UK is huge and growing, with sales of Fairtrade products hitting £1bn in 2010. However, Fairtrade products only account for a small percentage of UK sales so we still need more people to support Fairtrade by buying more products. If everyone currently buying Fairtrade just purchased one item more, we could benefit so many more producers.

 

Our Campaign in 2012 is ‘Take a Step for Fairtrade’. Next year we want everyone to take a step for Fairtrade. Make it a small step, like swapping your tea to Fairtrade or buying a Fairtrade cotton t-shirt from Laura Ashley or a bigger step, like getting your friends & families to do something too. Whatever step you take, you’ll be joining thousands of communities and businesses all over the country, taking the next steps on their Fairtrade journeys. Together, we’ll take 1.5 million steps for Fairtrade in 2012.  That’s one for every Fairtrade producer around the world. Each one leads to a better deal that millions of farmers and workers in developing countries urgently need.

You can’t say fairer than that! Thanks Rachel!

 

For more information please visit Fairtrade’s website

To view Laura Ashley Fairtrade cotton t-shirts click here