In the late 80's, when a documentary on European TV told the world that luxury rugs were being produced in South Asia via child labor, carpet exports from Nepal plummeted. Sulochana Shrestha-Shah, who had just returned to Nepal from Europe with a Master's in Mathematics, and was struggling to put her skills to use as an employee at the Royal Nepal Academy of Science and Technology, knew she had to do something. With her husband's ancestral property as collateral, she took out a loan for NPR 300,000 and began her journey as an ethical businesswoman.
Formation Carpets was established in 1990 as a social enterprise -- at a time when carpet factories were known as dark and dirty places, a bright model factory with shower facilities was established. Boasting women-empowerment with a 100% female workforce, men were only hired to perform heavy-lifting activities. As a social enterprise, the profits of the company were used to award full scholarships to the children of the employees, up to high school matriculation, while providing daycare facilities for the pre-school kids. This was facilitated by the non-profit, Hoste Hainse, which Sulochana Shrestha-Shah registered a week before Formation Carpets. Three decades later, some of these children now work as production managers of Formation Carpets, something their weaver mothers could only dream of.
Complimentary health insurance, maternity leave, and holiday pay, to name a few, were some of the benefits that made people want to work at Formation Carpets, but Sulochana Shrestha-Shah did not stop there – she started a campaign to end child labor at all other factories. She joined forces with Kailash Satyarthi in India to establish Rugmark (now Goodweave), an organization that rescues and rehabilitates children from child labor. In 1997, Sulochana Shrestha-Shah received the U.S.-based Advocates for Human Rights award for all the ethical work she spearheaded.
Read more @ www.formationcarpets.com
Company Details
- Employees
- 12
- Founded
- -
- Address
- 4/176 Bhawani Mandup, Jawalakhel, Po Box 3459,nepal
- Industry
- Manufacturing
- NAICS
-
ManufacturingBeverage and Tobacco Product ManufacturingMiscellaneous ManufacturingTextile Furnishings MillsOther Textile Product MillsOther Miscellaneous ManufacturingCarpet and Rug MillsCurtain and Linen MillsTextile Bag and Canvas MillsAll Other Textile Product MillsJewelry and Silverware ManufacturingDoll, Toy, and Game ManufacturingOffice Supplies (except Paper) ManufacturingSign ManufacturingAll Other Miscellaneous ManufacturingRope, Cordage, Twine, Tire Cord, and Tire Fabric MillsAll Other Miscellaneous Textile Product MillsGasket, Packing, and Sealing Device ManufacturingMusical Instrument ManufacturingFastener, Button, Needle, and Pin ManufacturingBroom, Brush, and Mop ManufacturingBurial Casket Manufacturing
- Website
- http://www.formationcarpets.com
- Keywords
- hand-knotted rugs and carpets.
- HQ
- Kathmandu, Bagmati
Formation Carpets Questions
Formation Carpets's website is http://www.formationcarpets.com
Formation Carpets's LinkedIn profile is https://np.linkedin.com/company/formationcarpets
Formation Carpets has
12 employees.
View email and phone details for 12
employees at Formation Carpets.
Formation Carpets's industry is
Manufacturing
Formation Carpets's top competitors are
Goodweave Certification Nepal,
Cloudfactory,
Yeti Distillery,
United Nations Global Compact,
Hoste Hainse,
Alaya,
Hammertown Barn,
Un Global Compact Network Nepal,
The Forest Resort & Recreation Center,
Recareerization.
Formation Carpets's categories are Manufacturing
Formation Carpets's founding year is 1990
