For us, “fair and direct” means that we establish a direct contact between the craftsman and you as customer. You can even call your craftsman in Africa. We make transparent who gets how much in the value chain. You can decide what amount you consider fair.
Craftsmen or artisan in African countries provide a very high level of creativity. The reason behind are the limitations. The majority is forced to overcome limitations in tools and materials. In general they have limited access to machine tools also. The creativity and sense for material combined with patience leads to beautyful and special producs.
Challenge for Craftsmen in Africa is the low prestige in the country and assosiated the limited payment for their service.
Urban Change Lab aims to provide direct and fair access for African craftsmen to the European Market.
Whenever a customer requests a quotation we forward this to an craftsmen within our network in Kenya, Ghana or Nigeria. We ask for a fair price for your product. We add then costs for shipping, tax, customs and of couse our margin. Don’t worry, we are always transparent about those costs.
If you like we provide direct access between the craftsmen creating your product and yourself. Don’t hesitate, it is your chance to get in touch to a nice person in Africa.