Although a successful business, we have remained small enough to ensure we are able to control all aspects of our buying – especially in respect of our long-standing commitment to fairly traded products from the developing world.
We make regular overseas visits to meet our suppliers, in countries including: Indonesia, India, Nepal and Thailand. We deal directly with suppliers; often family-run businesses operating out of their homes. Such employment helps to maintain small economic communities; allowing people to remain in their own villages, instead of having to migrate and seek work in cities - where prospects and living conditions are usually poor and family/ community support often non-existent.
We seek to establish long term relationships with our suppliers – some have been supplying us for in excess of 20 years. We buy at fair prices and pay all our suppliers to agreed terms. We pay our suppliers in the developing world a percentage cash payment ‘up front’; allowing them to source materials and take on additional craftspeople to fulfil our orders. In this way they are able to avoid loan sharks who seek to charge exorbitant interest rates on small, vulnerable businesses. We believe that business should be fair, ethical and beneficial for all.
Our owner Brian, in our shop in Burgess Hill, West Sussex.
Brian with Ika who looks after all of our business in Indonesia. We found this fresh fruit stall miles from anywhere in Bali.
Ika bought a pineapple and borrowed the stall holders knife to cut portions for us all.
One of our Indonesian Manufacturers proudly posing with some Elephant figurines they hand painted and made exclusively for us!
We aim to show and describe our products in an accurate manner. However, because of the variance of screen settings, we cannot guarantee 100% that images will reflect the true colour of a product. All measurements are accurate - although this is always a challenge with products that are totally handmade. In such cases, a slight variation of size and/or colour is to be expected.
Present Company is proud to financially support Elephant Family, an ambitious charity striving to prevent the extinction of the Asian elephant.
Company Details: presentcompany.co.uk is solely owned by Brian Wiseman, 33 Market Place Shopping Centre, Burgess Hill. RH15 9NP