Over the last few years fundraising bracelets have become a very popular alternative to chocolate and pie drives. Silicone bracelets are inexpensive, come in a range of single colors, can be custom designed, are durable, can be used for any event and give great profit. However, while reasonably easy to manufacture, they create a product that is non-biodegradable and largely supports big business.
String friendship bracelets are another popular style of fundraising wristband. Making friendship bracelets has always been a very popular past time. Sharing the bracelets with friends is a great way to show how much they care about each other. In fact the girl guides offer making friendship bracelets as a way of earning their jewellery badge. The girls love handing the bracelets onto someone they care about.
Because of how easy they are to make, string friendship bracelets are readily made by women in developing nations as a way to support their families. They are able to make extremely colorful simple bracelets, through to bracelets with complicated woven patterns. They can even customise them to include slogans and promotions or team colors. While more expensive than silicone, string friendship bracelets mean so much more as each carries the story of the manufacturer.
The difficulty with a “fair trade” fundraising program however has been to find their market. In the past, the women sell the bracelets to a western friend, aid worker or missionary who then out of the goodness of their heart sells them at some charity event and donates the money back to the manufacturer. While this is all nice and makes everyone feel good, it’s not a sustainable business model for someone in a developing nation; that is it’s not really “fair trade.”
Well the beauty about the internet and the World Wide Web is that it has opened up the global market. Actually this fact has become a nightmare for multinational business. Historically, by keeping the consumer and manufacturer in the dark, they could buy and sell product at whatever price they liked. This strategy has probably been the biggest contributor to unfair pay and sub-standard conditions that workers in developing nations live with to this day. The internet has levelled that playing field. The consumer now has more choices about what they buy and today a consumer can afford their purchase to be socially responsible.
Today there are only a handful of fundraising business’ out there that supports a proper “fair trade” model. They have joined with developing communities to give them an outlet for their product. Add to this that friendship bracelets have great profits and easy to tag with a social justice educational program, makes this type of fundraising a valuable alternative.
While silicone bracelets have a lot of features, the benefit of a “fair trade” fundraising program is significant. Friendship fundraising bracelets are a profitable alternative that is not only green but also a fair trade.
