Twenty years ago, artisans from Esperanza on the Tahuayo River were riding high selling thousands of chambira baskets to the U.S. Challenges with quality control, unsustainable harvest, coordinating production with artisans from multiple communities, changing markets and needing to send their products by air freight instead of ship almost wiped out the enterprise.
Amazon Ecology is now working with the remaining core of their artisans to give them a second chance. They don't have Chino's reliable flow of tourist visitors, but their talented artisans are willing to learn to make new crafts like bird and insect ornaments with us.
Marianela and I arrived in Esperanza on late Thursday and settled into the hostel next to the central soccer field designated by its wooden pole goals. We had a simple dinner of fried eggs, rice and fried bananas at the house of Erica who has been the artisan leader through good and tough times. Decorations in village homes are often sparce, but it was touching to see a framed photo of her father and faded image of a baby on her wall.
After dinner I was grateful that our boat driver Jairo gave me a vigorous and soothing massage of my sore back with some Vicks Vaporub. I love seeing these little tins because my father worked for the company that makes this iconic product for 33 years. Jairo unfortunately had to end his session just before 7:30 pm because residents who arrive late for mandatory community meetings have to pay a stiff fine.
I slept reasonably well in my bed with a mosquito net tightly draped overhead. We returned to Erica's house for a quick breakfast of fried eggs and carefully walked over the slippery sidewalk to a house to meet the artisans.
I selected a few baskets laid out on benches and placed an order for elegant two-color models. Lindy reported good progress making lady bug ornaments and planned to attend our artisan facilitator training. We were happy the group looked forward to hosting a bird-making workshop in July with artisans from 3 Tahuayo communities.
We saw a wide variety of tiny tetras, angel fish, arawanas, pirañas, electric eels, spotted stingrays, striped catfish, beautiful discus and other popular ornamental species. They also had sabalo whose export for the aquarium trade is banned since it is a vital source of protein and income for fishing families in the region.
The Marca Loreto gives Garza Viva the right to use the brand for two years. Its benefits include officially recognizing the quality of our products and certifies they were genuinely made in Loreto. This seal can increase their appeal and prestige at local, national, and international levels and create opportunities to participate in national and international events and fairs to increase visibility and sales.
"I had heard about marketing before, but didn't I didn't quite understand what it meant. Now I know how it can help us share the story behind our crafts and reach more people." - Angelica - artisan from Ancon Colonia
