Whenever you tell anyone that you are an ethical jeweller the question most people ask is “how much more money does it cost?” It appears that the world view of ethical and environmental products is that they cost more money. So is this true for ethical jewellery or can we produce our jewellery for a price relative to non-ethical jewellery?
The city view Fair Trade and ethical products in a purely financial way and this should be the way that we also aim to work. Products should be sourced responsibly but in a cost effective way. Mass production is cheaper than bespoke one-off products so it is important to find where and how mass production techniques can be undertaken at a reasonable price and within the a way that fits our ethos.
That is not to say that ethical jewellery cannot be bespoke but the mark-up price will have to be significant to cover other extra costs.
During our time using ethically sourced materials Opulent Ethics has always paid the same price for recycled silver as for non-recycled silver. We source our recycled silver from Cred who base their price on the daily Cookson pricing of silver.
Fair Trade gold is not the same. On average Fair Trade gold is 10% above the gold spot price whereas ecologically mined Fair Trade gold is 15% above the daily gold spot price. Currently, this means that buyers are paying an extra £4 for their Fair Trade gold per gram.
It must be remembered, though, that this additional money is going to do good. It supports the small-scale mines and communities which mine the materials. Some of the money goes towards improving infrastructure, education and health facilities ensuring that the lives of the people who work and live near the mines are improved.
It is possible that some money may go to middle men. So if you want to reduce costs you should ensure that you obtain your products, where possible, direct from the source or from responsible, reputable suppliers.
David Hargreaves, from Fair Trade Gemstones said during the Great Debate at International Jewellery London (IJL) this summer that the future aim for ethical jewellery is to have 5% of the jewellery market in 15 years producing and using 5 tonnes of fair trade gold per year. This is still a long way off but is definitely a reachable goal.
Small designers may not be able to afford to be 100% ethical yet so it is important to ensure that costs of ethical materials become manageable and in relation to non-ethical materials and the hope is that, over time, costs will be reduced and may even become equal.
It is, therefore, important that small designer makers like Opulent Ethics continue to pledge our support for ethical jewellery by working with the materials we can afford and by promoting ethical jewellery to our contacts and customers. Then, hopefully one day soon the costs of ethical jewellery can become more manageable.
That’s all for now….
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