Joyya

Values

About

Joyya started back in 2001 with one ambitious goal: to spark good in places of extreme poverty and modern slavery. Joyya was founded through the merger of three companies that decided they would be better together and their current team is led by Adrian Palmer of Common Good Coffee. Located strategically in four communities of West Bengal India, they are a global manufacturer and wholesaler of fair trade bags, apparel, and accessories.

The materials used in Joyya’s manufacturing are sustainable, eco-friendly, and gentle on the planet such as organic cotton, natural jute, and recycled materials. The employees and their families are at the centre of the business. Joyya’s products are available for export worldwide with dedicated sales offices in India, the United States of America, and New Zealand.

A big part of their mission is giving back to the community through their own initiatives. Joyya takes a unique 3-in-1 approach that includes their business arm (Joyya Goods), social arm (Joyya Collective) and relational arm (Joyya Neighbours).

Under the Joyya Goods pillar, they aim to provide meaningful employment with lots of extra benefits so their 180 employees are empowered to make dignified choices for themselves and their families. Joyya products are manufactured in Fair Trade conditions recognized by the World Fair Trade Organisation. Their commitment to providing living wages, a healthy working environment and improving our planet has also been recognized by the World Fair Trade Organisation.

Their tees are made from 100% organic cotton, certified by the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS). In other words, their suppliers use sustainable farming practices that don’t rely on damaging chemicals, hormones or preservatives. During the ginning process (removing the seeds from raw cotton), all their leftover cotton seeds are pressed to make oil or used as animal feed.

Their custom, made-to-order bags are made from cotton canvas or jute - a natural fibre that is both durable and recyclable. Some of their bags use laminated jute, which comes with a biodegradable plastic backing to help the bag hold its shape.

All their cotton is dyed using a 100% organic process that doesn’t pollute waterways or harm the environment. Their Kolkata facility uses water-based inks for screen printing, avoiding exposure to harmful petrochemicals and compounds. Finally, their knitting process takes place in Kolkata with Rajlakshmi Cotton Mills, a pioneer in fair trade organic cotton apparel manufacturing. The cotton they use is Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified, FLO-Fairtrade and Fair Trade-USA approved.

Under their social arm, Joyya Collective, they aim to provide communities in India with access to social support in six service areas that are health, education, legal & financing, housing, vocational training and social & recreation. They understand that every community has its own unique beauty and struggles so they enable the communities themselves to decide what support is best and then work to provide them with their needs.

“We want to be a source of good in the communities we live and work, seeing both the people and places flourish. We have four ambitious goals: be a source of economic opportunity where little is found, to spark lasting social change in our communities, and to have a lot of good times together as we try to make this a reality!”

Finally, with their relational arm, Joyya Neighbours, they commit to living with the people in their community. That means looking for small ways to support one another from celebrating wins to shouldering burdens together.

Joyya recognises that cheap merchandise comes at a cost to the planet and people. With this in mind, they aim to squash the norms by doing things differently. To bet on those who face adversity with courage and build authentic life-changing relationships, one neighbourhood at a time.

Dive Deeper

Joyya’s Impact Report 2022 - 2023
Joyya Certifications