A small Bristol firm that imports bags, aprons and tea towels made in India from 100% Fairtrade-certified organic cotton has landed one of the region’s top business awards.
Cotton Smiles, based in Easton, was founded by husband-and-wife team Jim Hayman and Vineeta Gupta to support the Fairtrade movement, providing better prices, decent working conditions and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers. 
Jim and Vineeta, who launched Cotton Smiles in 2014, decided to enter the South West Fairtrade Business Awards for the first time this year – and today they walked away with the top prize – Best Fairtrade Business 2018.
Judges said they had been “blown away” by the firm’s commitment to Fairtrade. Its “dedication and enthusiasm” for conducting business in an ethical way had shone through in its application.
The Best Fairtrade Business Award was one of nine presented today at a ceremony held in the New Bristol Brewery, St Pauls.
Other Bristol winners included last year’s Best Fairtrade Business, law firm Lyons Davidson (Best Fairtrade Office) and Natural Beverage Co, which won the new category of Best Fairtrade South West Product for its Ubuntu Cola – the UK’s first Fairtrade cola.
Zoe Robinson of Bristol-based ethical clothing firm The Good Wardrobe landed the title of Best Fairtrade Advocate award for the second year running while The Create Centre won Best Fairtrade Accommodation or Conference Centre and the Palestine Museum & Cultural Centre scooped the Best Fairtrade Retailer – Multiple Product – award.
A full list of winners with photos from the awards ceremony will appear in next week’s Bristol Business News e-bulletin.
The awards, now in its sixth year, recognise the contribution that businesses, organisations and institutes in the region make in support of Fairtrade by buying certified Fairtrade products for the workplace and raising awareness of ethical trade issues amongst their staff, customers and peers.
Photo by Jon Craig @JonCraig_Photos
