17-01-2008
Bafts highlights potential success of fair trade specialists
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The British Association for Fair Trade Shops (Bafts) believes there is growing evidence to show that specialist fair trade shops can thrive.
A representative from the organisation has confirmed that while it may be difficult for specialised shops to compete with larger retailers, the number of successful businesses is starting to increase.
Fair trade operates in accordance with a number of principals, including gender equality, transparency, the development of capacity and accountability.
"It is definitely still hard to be an independent retailer in this landscape, but the increased public awareness about fair trade has meant that fair trade retailing is not quite the niche market that it used to be," said a representative from Bafts.
According to Bafts, the range of fair trade products in specialist retailers also tends to be greater than in non-specialist locations.
The Fair Trade portfolio includes a number of different products, including honey, coffee, wine and cotton.