5 Honored with Global Goodness Awards

January 15, 2015  by in Green, Industry   

The awards recognize companies for environmentally friendly, sustainable and socially responsible activities and will be presented during next week’s Market.

CleanBrands,  Glory Haus, Phillips Collection, Samantha Davimes and Swahili Imports are all recipients.

“Las Vegas Market is pleased to recognize companies that are contributing in a substantive and positive way to socially-responsible business practices,” said Dorothy Belshaw, president of Gift & Home Décor, International Market Centers. “Now in its fourth edition, the Global Goodness Awards have become a coveted ‘badge of honor’ for companies who have dedicated themselves to the goals of sustainability and social responsibility. As the leading furniture, home decor and gift destination in the western United States, Las Vegas Market celebrates and shares these values with the industry.”

Las Vegas Market presents Fair Trade, sustainable and socially-responsible products and producers in showrooms and temporary exhibits through the Market. Within the gift and home temporary exhibits, MADE on C11 will feature its largest-ever concentration of exhibitors showcasing unique handcrafted, artisanal products—including handmade ceramics, pottery, home décor, letterpress, apparel and jewelry. Additionally, Las Vegas Market also has an ongoing partnership with the Sustainable Furnishings Council http://www.sustainablefurnishings.org/ (SFC) to create One Good World, a guide to sustainable furniture and home décor products to help connect legitimate suppliers and retailers in this new era of sustainability and accountability. The effort includes a sustainable products locator program, showcasing relevant at-Market resources, expanded educational offerings addressing issues and opportunities connected with sustainability. Details are available online. at http://www.sustainablefurnishings.org/post/las-vegas-market-jan-2015-onegoodguide

“Las Vegas is committed to supporting sustainable, environmentally-friendly products and responsible business practices and has been since the launch of the One Good World program in partnership with the SFC in 2008,” said Craig Staack, vice president of home furnishings leasing for International Market Centers. “The Global Goodness Awards program allows us to honor and call attention to the inspirational suppliers in our industry who are making the world a better place for all of us to live.”

Winners of the Winter 2015 Global Goodness Awards were selected, by an independent jury comprised of industry experts, based on their activities to integrate eco-friendly, sustainable and socially responsible practices into their businesses and manufacturing processes, and thereby improve the lives of people all over the world.  Details about the five winners, and their efforts to make the world a better place, follow. 

For the first time, the Global Goodness Awards added a social media component in the form of a special “People’s Choice” award based on industry feedback. The People’s Choice award was selected by popular vote on the Las Vegas Market Facebook page, and the inaugural winner is CleanBrands. Founded by third generation textile scientist Gary Goldberg, CleanBrands was originally intended to help his son, who was suffering from nighttime breathing difficulties caused by micro-toxins and allergens inside his bedding. Goldberg developed the patented MicronOne fabric used in the company’s CleanRest mattress and pillow protection, and today CleanBrands is providing healthy, restorative sleep environments around the globe, in homes, hospitals and hotels.

Glory Haus Inc. has been committed to community transformation since it was founded in 2008, supplying gifts, tabletop and holiday merchandise created by artisans in India. The company has partnered with Daughters of Hope, which espouses a belief that the path to empowerment and dignity begins with training and employment. Glory Haus helped build a factory that trains women in everything from personal hygiene to financial responsibility; free healthy meals are prepared on site for the mothers and their children in the free day care.  

Phillips Collection provides a new twist on reclaimed wood, creating innovative gifts and decorative accessories handcrafted from the roots of long-ago felled mahogany trees in Central Java, Indonesia. These one-of-a-kind forms in the Mahoni Root Collection are exquisitely carved and sanded, and act as freestanding sculptures. The company not only brings to market extraordinary pieces crafted from sought-after wood species but supports and sustains the local artisan communities where they are produced, all without felling a single tree.

Samantha Davimes is well-known for providing unique and artistic contemporary ethnic jewelry, crafted by talented artisans from South Africa, Swaziland and Thailand. Company executives develop personal and long-standing relationships with the artisans, their families and their communities, connecting these gifted artists and bringing their vision to the world at large.  

Swahili Imports, a member of the Fair Trade Federation, was established in 1995 with a single box of Kenyan handbags. Swahili’s extensive catalog of gifts and home decor now showcases the talent of artisans in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, Lesotho, Zambia, Uganda, South Sudan, Mali, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Senegal. Swahili works directly with artisans to cooperatively advance traditional craft methods using modern, sustainable designs, and empowers talented African craft producers to use their own creativity to strengthen their communities.