The exuberant nature of Asian craftsmen and their willingness to embrace new ideas, gives us an exciting and creative environment in which to work, developing the products that you, our customers, can use to help shape and style your homes.

We follow strict guidelines in the way we do business with our suppliers. These policies, central to our wider vision, may be summarised as follows:

Ethical Trading

Sunlover is recognised as a Fair Trade Importer by BAFTS (the British Association of Fair Trade Shops) and is listed in the BAFTS Importers' Directory 2005.

All prices are agreed directly with the producers and are reviewed on an ongoing basis, taking into account fluctuations in the cost of raw materials and local economic conditions. All producers are paid a minimum of 50% deposit when the order is placed, and the remaining balance on completion of the order.

Around two thirds of Sunlover products are produced in our own workshops (see below) - the remainder are bought in from small scale family businesses selling their own products.

We have a permanent co-ordinator based in the region, and we only work with families with whom we have established a personal relationship. In this way we can fully monitor all aspects of production, and ensure that due care is given to all health and safety issues. We work directly with the families concerned, offering advice, and, where appropriate, financial support to improve their equipment and working environment.

Sunlover does not permit school age children to work in its own workshops. However, as is common practice in the countries in which we work, children do occasionally work alongside their parents in an informal family environment, participating in the making of crafts and learning traditional craft skills. We accept that this can be the case with independent producers that we buy from and we give strict guidelines in this context.

When we commence working with any new workshop, we make a commitment to buy on a regular and continuing basis, and to work together with the producer to further develop their products to best suit the western market, at the same time continuing to respect the traditional skills and the views of the craftsman.

We are committed to good environmental practice. Wherever possible we use recycled materials, or materials from sustainable sources in the production of our products. In addition, we offer advice on production, reducing the environmental impact of some of the traditional techniques used.

Sunlover Workshops

When setting up our own workshops our aim has been to provide continued employment and training in an improved working environment, at a level of income above that of comparable workshops in the locality. Our workshops are well maintained with particular attention being paid to all aspects of health and safety.

Many of the craftsmen and women currently working in our workshops had previously worked for larger, privately owned companies, working longer hours for less pay. Others had been operating out of very small workshops, or in poor conditions, with their access to raw materials being controlled by larger companies, who regularly held on to stock, artificially forcing up prices.

Our relationship with all our producers is based on mutual respect rather than an employer/employee relationship, and we maintain a regular dialogue on all aspects of craft production and development. All work is carried out within strict limits on working hours, and we respect fully all the varied cultural ceremonies and religious holidays.

This approach, we feel, gives us a unique relationship with all of those with whom we work - trade with dignity.