Located on the very trendy and wonderfully diverse, Cowley Road in Oxford. Indigo is smack bang in the middle of an exciting cultural hub of music, art and brilliant food. The street is lined with independent shops, amazing pubs and music venues with a wonderful sense of community running through.
Indigo fits right in with their fresh and friendly fair trade boutique. The shop originally opened back in 2008 as a opportunity for owners Sarah and Josh to sell the goods they had brought back from their trips to India… as the business evolved and grew, the name was changed from ‘Saree Designs’ to ‘Indigo’ and the ranges were greatly expanded to include goods from a multitude of different countries and ethical companies. Indigo now prides itself on selling beautiful goods which are design-led with wonderful stories and a strong moral backbone.
"when the artisan is respected and able to work with natural materials in a way that satisfies them, they are much more likely to give love to what they create."
The Indigo website is also well worth a look, designed by friend of the shop, Jon Cook. It is easy to navigate and offers some truly gorgeous products from Braintree, People Tree, Nkuku and of course Just Trade
This year Just Trade were kindly given a donation by Indigo to invest into the communities in which we work. It was decided that the money should be given to the Association Vidas in Ayacucho.
The organisation’s main objective is to provide basic health care for the people who live in the mountains of Peru, through two small clinics; one in Quinua and one in San Melchor. They offer critical services including ultrasound exams, dental care and basic medicines like antibiotics and vitamins.
They have recently started working with very vulnerable older people and have began a program of “adopting” elderly people who have been abandoned by their families. Many of them live in extreme poverty without even the basics – such as a bed or blankets. Association Vidas buy beds, matresses, blankets, clothing and even do repairs on their houses. They commit to regularly visiting to check they are ok. The donation Indigo gave will allow Association Vidas to help 4 elderly people, giving them dignity in their final years.
Last month Laura and Ali took Nieves and Cristina from our Zoe Project to go and meet Raquel the founder of Association Vidas and the rest of the volunteers. (Photo: Nieves, Ali and Cristina from Just Trade meeting Raquel, Max and Tata from Association Vida.)
If you are interested in learning more about Indigo and the fantastic things they support, check out their website, facebook and twitter. And if you find yourself in Oxford, don’t miss out, head down to Cowley Road and say hello.