There is some really exciting news this month – a new Fair Trade shop is opening in Winchester! ‘Fuzzi’ will be launched on Saturday 10 September at 8 Parchment Street. It is the brainchild of a young local couple, Andy and Hannah Mintram, and they have been working on it ever since their honeymoon in 2009. The shop will sell local, organic and fair trade food, clothes and crafts. All Fuzzi products will either support local producers, have a reduced impact on the planet and its resources, or promote fair trade. They will consist of a mixture of tastes, colours and designs that make the products desirable in their own right. ‘From jewellery by Tinklertastic in Kings Worthy to hand-crafted rugs made by a fair trade women’s co-operative in India, Fuzzi will bring the world to Winchester.’
Andy and Hannah hope that their shop will do more than sell their products. They would like to promote discussion, increase education, challenge habits and preconceptions, encourage new behaviour, and help people make informed decisions. It sounds like a pretty full agenda! It is great to come across young people with such vision and drive. They also plan to be a social enterprise, to donate money to local projects that increase sustainability and to local organisations which help raise awareness of sustainability.