A nonprofit worthy of your patronage. Each & every artisan's arts & goods give back to improve their country's wellbeing. Art, baskets, crafts, clothing, jewelry & pottery. Quality handmade products aimed at giving back & providing unique gifts to your family, friends or yourself. All volunteers work here. Deanie & Tracy were friendly, knowledgeable & very informative of all products. Custom & unique handcrafted baskets for 30-50 vs 100-300 dollars. Unique Jewelry for 20-40 vs 75-100 dollars. Lots to appreciate & like here, plus giving back to help others. Check it out! Mustang USMC Retired read more

This store is probably the best ever to shop at in Asheville. It feels wonderful as soon as you walk through the door. There are so many amazing things to see and everything is fair trade! They not only help struggling villages all over the world but I just love the fact that it is being done right here in Asheville! Try the coffee, it's so good! Oh and by the way, Incite Coffee beans are roasted in Asheville so you're also supporting locals as well! In these crazy times Ten Thousand Villages makes you feel safe. They have hand sanitizer, implement the mask rule, social distancing and put in a brand new store wide air filter system. Christmas, birthday or 'Just because' is a must to find unique and amazing gifts for everyone in your special circle. The staff goes out of their way to make sure you have a great shopping experience. I love this special place and highly recommend them! read more

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by suggestion my lovely bride and I were near the pritchard park tourist district taking in some local flavor while trying to minimize contact with Asheville's not-so-great unwashed, unmasked, and socially proximate, three blocks later we abandoned the street to the increasingly dense population. entering 10kV we were assessed for compliance with the current disease control scheme and admitted :-) reminders to use the provided sanitizers were posted on every display table and masking was not too gently enforced. I really like it when "saying" and "doing" are the same thing. I ain't woke, just aware of what's going around, what's coming around, and whose hand is up the sock-bunny... didn't think I'd care for the place at first blush since "fair", "sustainable", and "empowering" are often tactics to extract additional funds from my pocket without providing any real value. but after poking about I'm pretty sure the advertised business model is legit: that funds go to the producers in the form of payments not charity. the price points feel right for the market and the workmanship seems sound. looked at lots of things, examined a few to determine their utility, got home and thought about how they'd fit in our space. we'll probably pick up a few necessary items next time through :-) read more

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My go-to for gifts for myself and my Beloveds. Functional art at reasonable prices, run by volunteers. Support Third World artists as you indulge. It's amazing, especially jewelry. read more

So apparently there is a store in Cambridge, MA (I live near Boston), but I've never been to that store... I HAVE been to this store, however, in Asheville, NC and it's was definitely worth the stop. At Ten Thousand Villages, they work with over 100 artisan groups in more than 30 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America to bring you fair trade jewelry, home decor, gifts and more. They are one of the world's oldest and largest fair trade organizations, and they build long-term relationships with artisans that are based on mutual understanding and respect... etc etc... Basically, shop here and you don't screw the little guy. But it doesn't end there.. the items they have available are charming and eclectic and reasonably priced. I personally bought a ring, some exquisite dark chocolate, and a wooden sculpture of a nose that doubles as an eye glass rest (because my mom keeps misplacing her glasses) all for around $20. This is a wonderful little store and it's certainly worth the stop in. read more

I think this place is really a great stop on your walk through downtown Asheville. My family enjoyed it and bought things and think they are helping the world by buying at this place. And the storekeepers could not be any nicer than they are. They had sample coffee which was great on this warm day for a little warm/pick me up. Lots of great handmade stuff from all over the globe from areas that need support which this store does. Fits the whole Asheville scene for sure. read more

This Fair Wage Shoppe has the cutest item! The staff was so friendly and I found a few gifts for other people as well.

Ten Thousand Villages is a unique and wonderful store in downtown Asheville. The mission of the store is to sell fair-trade products (meaning the artisans who make them are guaranteed a living wage for their work) from artists and craftspersons in developing countries around the world. The quality, variety and beauty of the goods sold are second to none and the staff are always incredibly knowledgeable and helpful. I love to support this store and, in turn, the larger mission it supports. It's shopping with a purpose and with a soul! read more

I LOVE Ten Thousand Villages. Great shop for gifts and for jewelry. They have tons of beautiful fair trade/fair pay items such as home decor, clothing, jewelry and instruments. I believe that the staff is all by volunteers and they are always super friendly and helpful. read more

Shop here and bring your guests visiting Asheville. They will love this unique store. They have something for everybody! Such a variety of gift and home items from around the world. read more

Congrats first for ten thousand villages for having handicap parking immediately in front of the store. Upon entering the store we were greeted by a very friendly staff who informed us of an international celebration going on and we were offered coffee as we shopped. It was my gf who really wanted to go in, and as others have said, it's a shop where you can get a unique in the form of metallic giraffes, marble hearts, various pendants, or in my case, a nice leather purse for my sister. As mentioned before, this is a fair trade store that works with several countries to bring products to you from artisans all over the world. Very cool purpose, very nice store. Stop on in. read more

After our last visit, I learned that this is a (non-profit) chain and there is one here in St. Louis. The one in Asheville is 10x better than the St. Louis location! So much great stuff. Our favorite shop in Asheville. read more

This is a great little shop. There are SO many unique and special things to look at in here. We started browsing, because we were waiting for a table at Tupelo Honey, but ended up buying some really great Christmas gifts. I love that everything in the store is fair trade, hand made, and sourced from around the world. Ten Thousand Villages itself is a non-profit, which aims to improves the lives of artisans in 38 countries. You will find a variety of items, from Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East. Artists are encouraged to use environmentally friendly processes and use recycled materials, as well. Really, it is just a win-win for everyone, and I encourage you to visit this fantastic little store. read more

Cute shop- great for gifts. Prices range from cheap to expensive with a lot of reasonable in betweens. I love the idea of more ethical gifts. This shop also have a lot of simple, practical housewares (blankets, books, lamps, toys, journals etc). The workers are friendly and I enjoy browsing the shelves. read more

I love Ten Thousand Villages - Asheville! The staff is truly the best and I've learned so much about Fair Trade. If you should ever need a gift for someone or even yourself, stop by TTV-Asheville and let one of their knowledgeable staff members assist. You truly will love your purchase! read more

I love shopping at Ten Thousand Villages. It's the first place I go for gifts for friends and family members. Everyone there is always very friendly. And the jewelry is so beautiful! I get compliments on earrings that I bought there all the time! read more

Ten Thousand Villages has been my favorite place to shop for decades. Even though I live in Cullowhee, I make special efforts to get to Asheville for this opportunity to enjoy and support artists and crafters from around the world in this ethicial, sustainable, friendly shop. I love it when someone compliments one of my purchases because I can then launch into my "Oh! I got it at Ten Thousand Villages! Do you know about that shop?!" speech. read more

One of the best Ten Thousand Villages I've visited. Love them, their fair trade mission, and their staff.