Everything is "handmade." In the process of production, human hands touch almost everything. I think in today's industrialized western society, we do a masterful job of disassociation. That $10 t-shirt from Zara? Someone, a world away, stitched it together. Why does that not qualify as handmade? If we started thinking about the hands that put together, or the hands that harvested our food, we'd have to confront the uncomfortable truth that we are all aware of—the exploitative nature of mass industry.
At Ajiri, our "handmade" is our pride. We don't want you to turn away, we want you to see what we see—the strong and talented and hopeful people behind our product. This tea is so smooth because it was handpicked. Sure, Kenyan tea is largely exported. But it is also enjoyed at home, commonly made over an open flame in a large sufria (pot), where fresh milk and lots of sugar are added.
And look at these whimsical labels. Look at the evolution of artistic talent. And if you look closely, you might see a glimpse into their lives. Women hanging wash, collecting firewood, taking care of children.
Maybe people want to enjoy a cup of tea without peering too far into the product. Fall into it or step over it, but we have to crack open this story of the people who craft our product. Because if we keep stepping over the cracks of truth, we risk living without compassion or connection.
Every fall, as children head back to school in the U.S., we are reminded of just how fortunate we are to have customers who care about scholars heading to school in Kenya. Thank you for stepping into the narrative, for stepping up for change. Thank you for directly giving these women a job, supporting small-scale tea farmers, and giving these scholars an education. In a world where people often look away, or are distracted by the light of their phones, thank you for looking up and looking in.
Asante sana,
Kate, Sara, and Ann
What We've Been Brewing and Doing this Summer
✨Our leader, Sara, just had a baby girl. Sara is surviving on our award-winning highly caffeinated black tea and our Kenyan AA coffee. She recommends, if you haven't already, to subscribe to our monthly coffee delivery. It is only $16.15 for 1 lb of coffee!
✨On their two week school holiday, the 35 Ajiri scholars engaged in a wide variety of enrichment programs. They went on a hike to a waterfall, took swimming lessons, participated in book clubs, learned to use the computer and send e-mails, and went out into the village to do community service.
✨Our scholars are often on the receiving end of help, and so they all really enjoyed being able to help someone else. They went to the village where the women craft our packaging, and helped the elderly women "smear" their houses. This involves a mixture of cow dung, water, and mud that is then applied to the side of their house to help keep the walls strong. After they helped smear the houses, the women taught our scholars how to make labels and the beads and twine that go inside the boxes.
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Angela, Wesley, and Damacline were now hopelessly off course. They had managed to scale that final fence and were walking down toward a forest. I wanted to run to them, set them on the right course, explain scale and direction and how they should put the compass on the map. But instead I watched them from the top of the hill. They were now making pretend owl calls to each other, quite literally hooting from one group to another and then bursting into laughter.
See, there is this tip-toeing around issues in business. No company should align itself too "political" for fear of alienating customers. But to have opinions and emotions—well, that's just human. As a society, we've become too corporatized—too sanitized to believe that companies shouldn't have a voice. Of course politics affect our business. Tariffs on tea! The war in Iran means higher costs of shipping our tea. The elimination of USAID and its direct impact on our community in Kenya. But more so than something directly affecting us and our business, we still care about policies that affect our neighbors and people across the world.
At Ajiri, we feel so lucky to be on this earth at the same time as all of you. Your purchase of tea holds a lot of that elusive power of art. Sure, your purchase is the transference of physical money that goes to support women and children. But your purchases of tea, time and time again, transfers this feeling of belief. You believe in these women. You believe in these kids. You believe that the world can be a better place.
Kate Holby
Author