BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (BP)–The nonprofit WorldCrafts ministry of Woman’s Missionary Union has introduced a new website to highlight its imported handcrafts from 31 countries around the world.
The new website, www.WorldCraftsVillage.com, features 300 handmade crafts and provides information on the artisan groups and their countries of origin. It also highlights a different country each month.
The website provides detailed product descriptions and allows customers to search by item type, country of origin, new items and clearance items. Customers also can sign up to receive updates on products and special offers. John-Mark Taylor, WMU’s webmaster, said the site is designed to load quickly and is easy to use.
The new WorldCrafts catalog, released Aug. 1, features all the items offered through the ministry and also helps meet the needs of those organizing WorldCrafts parties and events. Tips for planning and hosting a WorldCrafts event, recipes, artisan stories, a world map and prayer requests are available in the new catalog.
The ministry also has developed a new product for those who lead events. A new planner contains two promotional posters, a banner, pictures of 16 artisans, a large world map, an event planning and resource booklet, country display cards, invitation ideas, an introduction to WorldCrafts and more. The event planner is designed to meet the needs of both large and small groups.
In anticipation of expanding WorldCrafts events beyond Christmastime to other seasons of the year, the WorldCrafts team will be piloting a spring/summer catalog in 2006. This will provide an outlet for new artisans and products to join the WorldCrafts line twice a year and allow for more orders because of an emphasis on different seasons throughout the year.
The WorldCrafts calendar also has been reformatted. The new calendar is smaller and includes scenes from countries of the products’ origins and the artisans. Also available in the calendar are WorldCrafts coupons and a guide to pray for people groups around the world.
WorldCrafts helps establish personal relationships with craftspeople who live in poverty and helps provide them with a steady income. The ministry ensures fair wages and non-exploitive conditions for more than 2,000 craftspeople worldwide. The artisans are paid for their work when they provide the products, and WorldCrafts markets the items in the United States.
The ministry has allowed some women to escape prostitution and slavery and enabled others to receive an education and graduate from college. New churches also have been built, initiated by the WorldCrafts ministry.
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For more information on WorldCrafts, ordering crafts or hosting a party or event, visit the new website, www.worldcraftsvillage.com, or e-mail [email protected]. To order, call WMU customer service toll-free at 1-800-968-7301.
