Tribe Alive is a new lifestyle brand that utilizes a passion for fashion, fair trade principles and responsible commerce as a platform to help alleviate poverty among women worldwide. Tribe Alive works with global non-profits all over the world to help employ marginalized women at fair trade wages to give them access to a safe job, a sustainable income and a chance to determine their own future. Tribe Alive Co-Creators Carly Burson and Ashley Faircloth believe that fashion needs to be both beautiful and responsible, that it can be used to give back to the world and make a real difference in the lives of women and their families.
Carly Burson says, “The concept of Tribe Alive began out of my own experiences working with impoverished women all over the world. I spent years admiring the work of Mi Esperanza and their ability to impact lives through free skills training and employment opportunities at fair trade wages. I’ve worked in the fashion industry and I saw what Mi Esperanza was doing and I saw how we could help women by creating a platform to get their artisan goods to the marketplace.”
Ashley Faircloth adds, “The idea grew after Carly and I realized that we could expand this model beyond working with just the group of women in Honduras, now we’re working with groups in Guatemala and Ethiopia with plans to expand into a global marketplace.”
Burson explains, “Our partnership is a perfect balance of skills and experience. I have the non-profit experience and she has more of a business background and we’ve both worked with fashion and have a real passion for helping women better their lives.”
The first collection launched by Tribe Alive consists of a bag collection from Guatemala and a smaller bag collection out of Honduras, a jewelry collection out of Honduras, and another out of Ethiopia. Tribe Alive plans to expand on their assortment with their second collection, which will launch later this year.
Alison Wandschneider, Sales and Marketing Coordinator of Fundación Tradiciones Mayas says, “It is a joy to work with Ashley and Carly as their energy and excitement about Tribe Alive is contagious. We especially appreciate the opportunity to partner with a business and business owners that share our values and vision for a future that celebrates women and especially indigenous women artisans.” Wandschneider’s foundation has partnered with Tribe Alive to help indigenous women in Guatemala.
Another Tribe Alive partner, Lori Connell, the Co-Founder/Executive Director of Honduras Mi Esperanza writes, “Mi Esperanza is thrilled to have Tribe Alive working with us as a partner in hope. We are excited by their passion to elevate women out of poverty and their commitment to doing that through providing work that produces stable income for women and their children.”
Tribe Alive currently works with artisan partners in Honduras, Guatemala and Ethiopia, with plans to expand into multiple other countries as the brand grows. Tribe Alive’s product will be sold through an online marketplace at http://www.tribe-alive.com which goes live November 1, 2014. Currently Tribe Alive’s first line is made up of jewelry and bags. In the future, the brand plans to expand into a broader assortment of accessories and home decor.
Tribe Alive is currently running a crowd funding campaign to help launch their second line and expand their ability to offer work for indigenous artisans in more communities in the future. To learn more or to donate visit: http://tribealive.tilt.com. The crowd funding campaign runs until Sunday, October 5, 2014 and the “tilt” goal is $15,000 with a full goal of $30,000. The campaign has already reached more than $12,000, but Tribe Alive will not receive any funds until they reach the initial goal of $15,000 – so it is important to show your support.