Does Banana Boat have new craft items for sale?  You had mentioned bringing on more suppliers.  Is this happening?

Yes we do have new craft items for sale and we are always buying from new suppliers.  We have started to sell beautiful hand blown recycled glasses and vases which have recently started to be produced by a family on the outskirts of Kampala.  They use recycled wine bottles and window panes.  So far there is only one man who knows how to blow the glass but he is going to start training others.    We have new coasters and bowls that are made from recycled papers and are great holding dry goods such as candies, fruits, keys, and any other bits and pieces.  These are produced by an income generating project for vulnerable youth called Bantu Culture to help pay for higher education.  We also have lovely new soft fabric bags that are produced by the mothers of children with special needs at the Mukisa Foundation which is a support centre providing…

Have you implemented the “stories” behind each product for sale at Banana Boat? If so, what has the response been like?

We are continuing to label many of our products and customers do really like this but we still have many labels still to do.

How is the overall production at Paper Craft going?  What are the employment opportunities you offer?

The production at Paper Craft is going very well.  They were very busy at Christmas producing corporate Christmas cards and calendars for many different companies in Kampala.  The soap that paper craft produces is sold to many smaller guest houses and lodges in Uganda.  Paper Craft are still continuing to produce lovely recycled glass beads which they make into necklaces and earrings.  At the moment Paper Craft has 22 employees.

What has been the impact of Paper Craft and Banana Boat’s involvement in the local community and/or Ugandan population as a whole?

Together Banana Boat and Paper Craft support hundreds of families in Uganda which rely on our orders in able to have a regular supply of income.

Does Banana Boat still offer workshop opportunities for local crafters?

Yes we continue to help many suppliers with interest free loans to help them to purchase equipment or materials that they need.

Paper Craft is an employee-owned recycled + natural papermaking business that promotes self-sufficiency for its employees, many of whom are women who are given training and employment in an environmentally gentle trade.

A simple brick structure with a corrugated roof built on a slope. Harriet walks us through the paper-making process – they use elephant grass, banana + pineapple fibers – cleverly repurposing offal from other trades that would have otherwise wound up in the landfill. The materials make for paper with a hearty, textured, organic quality. They source shredded ledger and business paper from a local bank to make their recycled paper and these have a smoother, finished look.

Once dried, the paper is turned into a number of finished products that the shop employees create – picture frames, stationary, decorative boxes, tags, photo albums. These products are then sold to retail outlets including Banana Boat African Craft stores.

Back in Kampala, we visited a Banana Boat African Craft store and met Ralph and Suni (pronounced “shoe-knee”), owners of the Kampala-based retail operation. This progressively-minded, entrepreneurial couple provide many services to their employees + suppliers beyond the traditional exchange of goods and services. Unlike many other craft retailers, they pay their suppliers in cash, not consignment.

Banana Boat stores promote sustainable + renewable materials and are particularly supportive of businesses such as Paper Craft who actively train and educate community members toward self sufficiency. Banana Boat, in fact, provided a microloan to the employees at Paper Craft so that they could buy their business. Bank-funded loans can charge small businesses 25-40% interest, while the funds from Banana Boat to Papercraft are no interest loans that Ralph and Suni offer to employees and suppliers with the understanding that they are simply paid back in agreed installments every month.

A compliment to their successful retail business, Ralph and Suni invest in the potential in people. The loans they’ve offered through Banana Boat catalyze profound changes in the local community – employees can buy a business, fueling their self sufficiency and confidence without sacrificing the environment or accepting undue financial risks. In turn, Paper Craft employee/owners provide their village with positive examples of previously untrained community members who have transformed into contributors to commerce through craft.