In 1994, Aileen Garden, then Manager of Gateway World Shop in Durham, attended a meeting of European World Shops in Maastricht, the aim of which was to consider setting up an international association. Most European countries already had a World Shops’ Association and the UK was an exception. Amid great enthusiasm, NEWS (the Network of European World Shops) was established. Inspired, and fueled by all this enthusiasm, Aileen came home and organised a conference for all of the fair trade shops in the UK with whom she had any contact.
The response was huge and a year later in 1995, BAFTS ‘The British Association of Fair Trade Shops’ was formed; a membership organisation for shops selling fairly traded handicrafts in the UK.
In 2000, BAFTS became a registered company limited by guarantee.
In 2011, we welcomed registered suppliers to our membership network and changed our name to ‘BAFTS – The British Association of Fair Trade Shops and Suppliers’.
All our members are committed to the 10 principles of Fair Trade and to bringing about positive societal change in the communities where they work. In 2018, our members voted to rename us ‘BAFTS – Fair Trade Network UK’ as we become more widely known as the WFTO’s network member for the UK.
Recent changes in the way people shop, including increasing reliance on e-commerce and the global pandemic meant that we had to support our members to be agile and responsive to changes in global trade.
BAFTS has supported members to thrive in e-commerce on the eBay for Change programme, and our partnership with graphic design students at Portsmouth University has helped members design new logos and promotional materials at low cost.
Now with over 100 members we remain the WFTO’s network member for the UK and a supporter member of Social Enterprise UK.
Company Details
- Employees
- 5
- Industry
- International Trade And Development
- NAICS
-
International Trade Financing
- Website
- https://bafts.org.uk/
- Keywords
- Fair Trade, Sustainability, Retail, Trade.
Bafts Fair Trade Network Uk Questions
Bafts Fair Trade Network Uk's website is https://bafts.org.uk/
Bafts Fair Trade Network Uk's LinkedIn profile is https://www.linkedin.com/company/bafts-fair-trade-network-uk
Bafts Fair Trade Network Uk has
5 employees.
View email and phone details for 5
employees at Bafts Fair Trade Network Uk.
Bafts Fair Trade Network Uk's industry is
International Trade and Development
Bafts Fair Trade Network Uk's top competitors are
Namaste Fair Trade,
Daughters Of The Ganges,
Macgregor Industrial Supplies Incorporating Balgownie,
Uglobal,
The Point At Polzeath,
Fast Fix Co.,
Archangel Events,
Empros Retail Ltd,
Degrowth London,
Travel Britannia.
Bafts Fair Trade Network Uk's categories are International Trade and Development
