Oliberté

Oliberté
Industry Retail
Founded 2009 (2009)
Founders Tal Dehtiar
Headquarters Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Area served
 Worldwide
Key people
 Tal Dehtiar
(CEO / Founder)
Products Shoes, bags, accessories
Website oliberte.com

Oliberté is a shoe and bag brand that owns and operates the world's first Fair Trade Certified factory,[1][2] based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

History

The company was created in 2009 as a small footwear company that partnered with various factories and suppliers in Africa, until they gained enough momentum to open their own factory in 2012.[3][4] They make every single pair of Oliberté shoes at this factory in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In September 2013, they also became the world’s first Fair Trade Certified[1] footwear manufacturing factory.[2]

Philanthropy and community programs

For every pair of shoes sold, all workers in the factory earn a percentage of the cost,[5] and when a product leaves the factory, it is considered sold. This additional income is paid directly to a special workers’ account, enabling the workers to decide collectively how to spend it. Workers can also vote to take the Fair Trade premium dollars as a cash bonus, which is often equivalent to an entire month’s salary or more.[6]

Oliberté is a B Corporation certified company,[7][8] which requires that a company achieves a minimum score for "social and environmental performance."

Oliberté is a part of the One Percent for the Planet program, which means that 1% of all proceeds are donated to green initiatives.[9][10]

Vertical Integration

Oliberté employs a vertical integration model in their production to ensure that rigorous quality and environmental standards are maintained, and that businesses on the African continent receive the full benefit from the social enterprise.

Goat and cow leather used by the factory comes directly from Ethiopia. It is certified free-range and hormone-free, and the main tannery has the world’s only chrome-recycling system.[9][11]

Their all-natural rubber is sourced from live trees found in multiple African countries such as Liberia, South Africa, Kenya and Ethiopia, depending on availability.[12]

References

  1. 1 2 "Oliberté Manufactures the World's First Fair Trade Certified™ Footwear - Fair Trade USA".
  2. 1 2 Baker, Brandon. "Oliberté Becomes World's First Fair Trade USA Certified Shoemaker". EcoWatch. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  3. ↑ Westhead, Rick. "Oakville businessman invests In Africa's industrial revolution". Toronto Star. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  4. ↑ Dijkstra, Andrea. "World's first Fair Trade shoe factory in Ethiopia". Club Africa. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  5. ↑ "Ontario shoe company Oliberté first in world to get fair trade certification". Metro News. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  6. ↑ "OLIBERTÉ—IMPACTING SOULS THROUGH FAIR TRADE SOLES". Fair Trade USA. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  7. ↑ "Oliberte Limited - Bcorp Impact Report".
  8. ↑ "Oliberte Limited". B the Change. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  9. 1 2 "OLIBERTE JOINS 1% FOR THE PLANET". GrindTV. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  10. ↑ "Oliberté + 1% for the Planet : One Percent for the Planet".
  11. ↑ Badore, Margaret. "Oliberté shoes are stylish, functional and fair-trade certified". Treehugger. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  12. ↑ "A Good Look At The Fair Trade Certified Footwear Brand, Oliberté's Premium Collections". KicksonFire. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
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