Ten Thousand Villages

I found this store while wandering around Minneapolis, and I’m totally in love with it. Not only is the idea for the store amazing– all the items are bought fair trade from artisans around the world– but the selection is fantastic and the prices are reasonable. I live in Texas, so unfortunately I can’t stop by whenever theirs strikes me, but thankfully they do have on line shopping!
I settled on just one pair of earrings, but they’re beautiful. The selection of ‘fine’ jewelry in the cases by the register are a bit more pricey, sure, but they’re still a lot less than if you were buying a designer piece from Jared’s.
The staff is friendly and helpful, and they have cards all around the store so you can read more about the societies the goods come from. Each piece has a label letting the purchaser know where the piece is coming from, and my earrings had their own print out page to accompany the sale with even more information. Not sure I’d that’s for all goods bought or just the ‘fancy’ pieces in cases, but the earrings were only about $ 30, so well within reason.
I can’t wait to go back and browse more!

this place is amazing lots of hand made art. everything is fair trade and the staff is very knowledge and will tell you where the stuff comes from. each of their items have story’s linked to them about the people who made them and the village they come from. this place shows how great artists are in other locations of the world. i would recommend you at least going in to take a look.

I really like the store and it’s mission. A great place to browse and get a taste of other cultures through shopping (second only to food in my favorite way to learn).
It would be a five star location but in the half a dozen times we have visited we’ve never purchased anything.

One of my favorite afternoon field trips includes lunch at Café Latte, a stop at Cooks of Crocus Hill, and a meander through Ten Thousand Villages. I love trying on the fabulous jewelry, checking out the dishes, and chatting with the helpful staff. This place also has fabulous toys for youngsters and young of heart, and an amazing assortment of baskets. Ten Thousand Villages also sells gift cards that can be used at any location-​which make fabulous gifts for friends and family who are looking to furnish their new apartment or house. Overall, this place is just an amazing store!

This store specializes in selling fair trade goods from around the world: jewelry, scarves, purses, placemats, lamps, etc. Little tags will tell you where everything is from. I like the fact that it is fair traded. Store is huge and well organized. I like how they try to match the colors of the jewelry and scarves together.

P & I have been registering for our wedding. Although we did register at 2 mainstream stores, we wanted to register at a store that reflects us as individuals. We choose Ten Thousand Villages. They have amazing décor and fun things for the home as well as purses, food and toys. Best of all they are supporting fair trade. You can feel good about the purchases. Now I just hope the family enjoys the store as we do.

I really enjoy the idea of this store. Everything is fair trade. They sell home goods, coffee, jewelry, cd’s and much more. It reminds me of Cost Plus World Market, but I feel less guilty buying dirt cheap stuff. All the items support fair trade items from several countries. Actually, when you purchase something it tells you which country it was made in.
I just did a little Christmas shopping tonight and walked away with a pair of earrings, a cute wooden box and some hazelnut chocolate.