Karen Yelick, COO & CFO of Indego Africa along with creative director Deirdre King introduce the non-profit organization which partners with women artisans in Rwanda. In part two of the interview, King and Yelick talk making the shift from selling small scale crafts to encouraging cooperatives and securing brand partnerships. The two explain how Indego Africa loops sales back to education programs in Rwanda while honoring fair trade.

“We were really impressed at the entrepreneurial spirit and desire with women in Rwanda. It’s innate. Their hurdle is access to markets and that’s where Indego steps in. Our business model is to run a supply chain from Africa to New York and distribute in the U.S.,” Yelick said.

“It’s a dual approach — income generation and education — and it takes time. But we have seen an evolution, especially with the co-ops we started partnering with five years ago.”

View: Part One, Part Three