About Us

Design, handmade, authentic, quality and ethical.

We think these words sum up our products well.

Design - We source beautiful, handmade products made by small artisans from around the world. Some of the products are traditional designs, some more modern, some are designed by us, and some by friends.

Handmade - Did we mention that our products are made by hand? Artisans craft these products in small-scale workshops by hand or with simple moulds. Our products are not made by machines on conveyor belts! No two items are exactly the same - this originality is part of the beauty and charm of the products.

Authentic - These products are not available on the high street. They are painstakingly made in small quantities by local artisans in communities where in many places making these products has been a tradition for generations. We import directly most of the products we sell from the producer organisations, usually in small quantities shipped to us by sea.

Quality - A lot of time is spent on making these products - in fact, have a look at a video of one of the artisans in action. Our partner organisations check the products at their end and we check them at our end.

Ethical - Almost all of our products are made by artisans affiliated with registered fair trade organisations. The artisans get a decent price for their product (more than the local price) and we pay at least 50% up front and the rest before the items are shipped to us. From time of order, production time to arrival at our doorstep it can take over three months. It’s a nightmare for our cash flow but it allows the artisans to purchase production materials up front.

Kartimarket was founded on two core principles: design and development. The two go hand in hand; design adds value to products, and if the higher price for this added value is passed on to the producers this should result in extra income for artisans and their communities. We work with fair trade producer organisations, this is the focus of our development efforts - providing artisans with decent remuneration for their efforts. This income contributes to a more sustainable (profitable) livelihood for them and their communities. We aim to contribute by helping providing feedback on quality and design - these elements lead to better products. The better the products they make, the more they can sell - it's a business-led approach to development.

We are a social enterprise (incorporated as a limited liability company) based out of a studio/warehouse in South London. Profits are retained in the company to reinvest in expanding our impact and enhancing the livelihoods of the fair trade artisans that make the products we sell.

The company was started by brothers Chris and Jaya Thursfield, based on their collective experiences working in furniture and product design, charity and fair trade organisations in Asia and South America, as well as in the private sector. Born in Australia to British and Indonesian parents – spending their youth between these three countries quickly led to a passion for travel and a love of visiting markets collecting interesting art and crafts from around the world.

After finally finding themselves in London at the same time and having always dreamt about starting a business together; and inspired by Jaya's time in Ecuador working with fair trade producers, they decided the time was right to put design and development together - and Kartimarket was born.

Chris obtained a degree in Industrial Design at Monash University, Melbourne, cutting his teeth as a product designer in The Netherlands and Australia before going freelance in furniture and interior design. While working between Melbourne and London as an interior architect/designer he found time to start up a small restaurant in Melbourne, Australia (Sataybar - if you’re ever in that neck of the woods check it out, it's based on our Indonesian grandmother's recipes - delicious!)

Jaya studied economics and Asian studies at Monash University before working for the Australian government in Canberra and Papua New Guinea. While working for a couple of years at an international development charity in Tokyo in 2003-2005, Jaya became interested in fair trade and subsequently went to Ecuador to work as a volunteer for a fair trade organisation (Camari, now one of our suppliers), before moving to London and working in the banking sector. On top of his duties at Kartimarket Jaya is currently doing a part-time MSc in Development Management at the London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE).