Those Served:
There are women all over Kenya who are in desperate need of jobs. By partnering with Kazuri, we intend to bring awareness to these individuals, to sell their product, and to create more jobs for additional women.

Project Overview:
We solidified our working partnership with The Kazuri Bead Company on our most recent trip to Kenya. By partnering with them, we hope to bring further awareness for the women and their product, which will in turn create more demand for the jewelry, and then create more employment!

The Story of KAZURI...

Kazuri Founder Lady Susan Wood was born (1918) in a mud hut in an African village while her parents were missionaries from England in the Ituri Forest. Lady Wood was sent back to England to be educated where she married Michael Wood, a surgeon.

They came to Kenya in 1947 and were dedicated to making a difference. Lady Wood started a coffee plantation on the Karen Blixen estate, famous from the award winning movie "Out of Africa", about 30 minutes from the bustling Nairobi city center. Lady Wood was a visionary - an unsung hero of her time - and she assisted her husband in founding the East African Flying Doctor Service, which expanded into the African Medical Research Foundation (AMREF) of which Michael Wood was Director General for 29 years. Michael Wood was knighted in 1985.

In 1975, Lady Susan Wood set up a fledging business making beads in a small shed in her back garden. She started by hiring two disadvantaged women, and quickly realized that there were many more women who were in need of jobs, and so Kazuri Beads was created and began its long and successful journey. It has become a help center for the needy women (especially single mothers) who had no other source of income.

In 1988 Kazuri became an actual factory and expanded hugely with over 120 women and men. Here women are trained and apply their skills to produce these unique and beautiful beads and jewelry. The beads are made with clay from the Mt Kenya area thus giving them authenticity to their craft. The factory acts as a social gathering with the hum of voices continuing throughout the day. With unemployment so high, one jobholder often ends up providing for an "extended family" of 20 or more. Kazuri is a member of the Fair Trade Act

They are a model for African commerce, as they are one of the few companies that provide healthcare, day care, pay three times the annual wage, and offer credit and savings plans.

Today Kazuri - the Swahili word for 'small and beautiful' - produces a wide range of hand made ceramic jewelry that shines with a kaleidoscope of African colors and Kenyan art, appealing to a worldwide fashion market. Kazuri's beautifully finished products are made to an international standard and are sold worldwide. These standards are maintained through high training standards and a highly motivated management team.

Global Colors is extremely proud and excited regarding our partnership with Kazuri!

To see and purchase Kazuri necklaces, please visit KAZURIWEST.COM, and remember, the more beads we sell, the more women we take off the street in Africa!