Ten Thousand Villages

Shopping at Ten Thousand Villages is a global adventure

Ten Thousand Villages

Discover jewelry, accessories and home accents handcrafted by fairly paid artisans in developing countries around the world. Find innovative products made from recycled materials. Notice traditional skills used to create on-trend designs. Fall in love with unique gifts you will be proud to give.

The people who make our handcrafted products receive fair prices for their work. And because we commit to long term relationships with our artisan partners, they have incomes they can count on, allowing them to plan for the future and build better lives for their families.

As the world's original fair trade retailer, we are committed to alleviating poverty, continuing in the work of our pioneering founder, a woman named Edna Ruth Byler. Today Ten Thousand Villages is a network of stores around the country supporting thousands of artisans around the world - but it all started right here in Lancaster County, nearly 70 years ago. On a visit to Puerto Rico in 1946, Byler met women who struggled to find jobs and feed their families. Moved to take action, she began selling the women's embroidery work to friends and neighbors. The project that began in the trunk of her car became Ten Thousand Villages and started the fair trade movement.