Festina Lente

Last week the Peace Corps sponsored an artisan fair in the American embassy in Lima. All business volunteers, as well as youth, health, or environment who work in towns with artisan associations, could attend. The American embassy in Lima is fortress-sized. It looked like it would take ten minutes to walk from one end to the other (perhaps more, guesstimating was never my forte). There was a workshop which was about commercialization but ended up being a lot of pictures from Crate and Barrel catalogues. This is the second time I’ve been to a workshop run by a Peruvian for artisans where they showed such types of pictures, and the second time that I’ve heard the following (paraphrased): the home and decor market in the US has thrived since 9/11 because people started staying in their homes all the time and were afraid to go out. They try to make their homes feel safe and comfortable with pretty little bits and pieces from Crate and Barrel. I’ve heard this twice in one month here in Peru from experts, and was never aware of it while living in the states. I still don’t know if it is true or not, but interesting nevertheless. In any case, I could have gone for a bit more relevancy in the talk but you take what you can get (read: there was a free lunch).

The fair was all day Friday, and I was lucky enough to be at a table inside. Half the groups were outside under a tent that was a little bit leaky and it was cold and raining all day. Yuck. My groupo did pretty bueno with the sales. There were between 35 and 40 groups there and I think it was a hit for everyone (especially since CdP covered the travel and hostel expenses). Experience level ran the spectrum, so for some it was another opportunity to make a profit, while for others it was a good learning experience. For me as well, it was a great way to learn how to sell, what sells, how to set up a table, how to ‘haggle’, etc. The group I’m working with sells products from four different lines, silver jewelry, pressed aluminum, batik (dyed fabric), and woven products from native cotton. The cotton products are cool because they dye the cotton with everything from aloe vera to avocado seed- the colors are subtle but beautiful. I digress, there were a few other groups there with similar products to ours, some with ceramics, some selling food (algorrobina, honey, chocolate, yogurt), and an assortment of other artisan groups. It must have inspired my group, because in a meeting today we committed to four other fairs in the next four weeks. More to come.