We recommend watching the video version of this episode on our YouTube channel, you can find it here:
"Buy a Moroccan Rug and Support the Work of Local Women"
Today's episode features the Akhnif Lglaoui Carpet Co-Operative, located just south of Aït Benhaddou and Ouarzazate, about 150 miles south of Marrakech.
Learn about rugmaking in an informative, curious, no-pressure environment that supports the work of the local women who work so hard to make these amazing yet functional pieces of art.
We meet Sarah, host and guide of the facility, who gave Azdean and family a tour and shows them the incredible weaving and rugmaking that is done there, all by hand.
This Women's Co-op is groundbreaking, and crucially important not just to the local economy, but to women's recognition and self-sufficiency. Instead of relying on others, typically men, to sell their detailed and complex creations, products of hours of hard work and labour (which are then often resold at even higher prices, for which the women don't see an extra dime) - at the co-op, each weaver has a say in the price and value of their rug, and when it's sold they get a very generous and appropriate percentage.
Imran and Azdean sat down with Sarah to learn about her story and what brought her back to Aït Benhaddou, now working to showcase the co-op and its efforts, as well as teaching the women some English!
Sarah explains the shopping experience there, which puts an emphasis on removing the stress and pressure to buy that you typically find elsewhere. At Akhnif Lglaoui, you are free to browse, learn about rugs and carpets, and perhaps even order one later from back home, once you've made the correct measurements in your house.
It's a breath of fresh air when it comes to shopping in Morocco, which you'll appreciate after our episode on Tipping in Morocco, and our Q&A on bartering and avoiding touts, which talked about safety and security, especially while shopping. It is refreshing to find a place that allows you to really appreciate the craft and work that goes into these unique, individual creations.
The Akhnif Glaoui has a bright future and we are pleased to support them and send our guests their way.
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