When Brands give back and shopping is guilt free

Shopping is one of my favourite past times, be it online or in real life, I love to shop. However I dont always buy…

My Shopping habits:

“…I enjoy a good quality brand, but I am not a label shopper. It doesn’t have to say ‘Chanel’ or ‘Gucci’ to be sublime quality, I left all that stuff behind in my teens…”

Shopping isn’t all about buying, I consider shopping almost as research. I look at what’s on offer and who is doing it well, then I compare prices. I consider myself to be a savvy shopper. I avoid unethical brands and try to support local independent businesses and ethical brands whereever I am able.

I enjoy a good quality brand, but I am not a label shopper. It doesn’t have to say ‘Chanel’ or ‘Gucci’ to be considered as great quality, I left all that stuff behind in my teens…

TK Maxx and Homesense are giving back to the children of Uganda.

This October two of my favourite brands Tk Maxx and Homesense will be selling a range of beautiful handmade baskets made by remote communities in western Uganda.

This exclusive range is part of their initiative to help disadvantaged families in Uganda to increase their incomes so they can afford to send their children to school

“I avoid unethical brands and try to support local independent businesses and ethical brands wherever I am able”

The income received from the sale of two baskets is enough to pay for one child to attend school for a term!.

TK Maxx and Homesense have been working in Uganda since 2008 helping more than 10,000 children in 12 communities to go to school.

A Brief history of Uganda

Uganda is a small republic in central Africa, approximately the size of Britain. Uganda gained independence from Britain on 9 October 1962 as a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state. In October 1963, Uganda became a republic but maintained its membership in the Commonwealth of Nations.

Uganda is one of the poorest nations in the world. In 2012, 37.8 percent of the population lived on less than $1.25 a day. To supplement their income, rural women may engage in small-scale entrepreneurial activities such as rearing and selling local breeds of animals. Nonetheless, because of their heavy workload, they have little time for these income-generating activities.

“The income received from the sale of two baskets is enough to pay for one child to attend school for a term!”

The poor cannot support their children at school and in most cases, girls drop out of school to help out in domestic work or to get married. Other girls engage in sex work. As a result, young women tend to have older and more sexually experienced partners and this puts women at a disproportionate risk of getting affected by HIV, accounting for about 57 per cent of all adults living with HIV in Uganda.