In a nutshell

ibuTrade was established in 2007 by myself, Tracey Donehue, and my good friend Kathy Stefanac to provide original, Fair Trade and environmentally friendly gifts and homeware to those with impeccable taste and ethical habits.

At ibu we are not solely focused on the products we sell, but also aim to highlight the stories behind those products. In compiling our range we have been fortunate to discover many inspiring artisans and organisations producing an array of quality gifts. These producers are inspiring for a range of reasons. They may follow Fair Trade principles by ensuring fair prices are paid and working conditions are safe while contributing to the development of impoverished communities. They may employ eco-logical practices such as using recycled, renewable, bio-degradable or organic resources, promote traditional skills that consume little energy resources and value cultural knowledge, or operate carbon-neutrally.  Besides their ethical credentials, all ibuTrade contributing producers have one essential feature in common; they create unique gifts of exceptional quality. To learn more about the people behind the products, please visit the Producers section of this site.

What does 'ibu' mean?

The name ibuTrade is derived from the Bahasa Indonesia word for mother, “ibu”, and is pronounced iboo. In using this term we aim to highlight the importance of Mother Nature; the Mother Spirit that smiles at adversity; the role of mothers in developing countries as well as in Australia; and the nurturing of unique skills to benefit those groups most marginalised by the modern global economy.

Shopping at ibuTrade

When you purchase a gift on the ibuTrade site, you are assured of exceptional quality, shopping security and prompt service.

The Shopfront categories are organised to allow you to browse by recipient (eg. for her), product category (eg. home decor) or by Producer (eg.oiko). There is also a Search facility.

At the checkout you can nominate a recipient for your purchase and also request to have it gift-wrapped. If you purchase a card we can write your requested message in it. Gift certificates are also available.

The ibuTrade site is protected by a 256-bit SSL certificate. All your details are encrypted for protection and your payment details are not stored. This ensures secure credit card transactions on our site, however we know that some people are not comfortable shopping this way, so if you would prefer to phone, fax or post us your payment details, please feel free to do so.

The product prices noted on the ibuTrade site include GST. We do not wish to mislead you by adding on such costs at the last minute. We also provide free delivery within Australia.

As an ethical business 5% of ibuTrade's annual profit is donated to selected charities.

Please view our terms & conditions for more information on ibuTrade policies.

Want to know more?

If you want to know more about our Producers, please visit their individual pages. You can also subscribe to our quarterly newsletter  and receive special offers and producer interviews and updates. We are constantly on the lookout for new and inspiring ethical artisans, so watch this space, ibuTrade is always evolving.

You can also read an interview about ibu at Soul Economy.

For any specific questions or suggestions please contact us.

Thanks for dropping by.