Artisans d’Angkor, A Company with a Difference

Artisans d’Angkor is a company unlike any other.

Borne from a French development initiative in Cambodia, the organization provides free training to young artisans from rural areas in Siem Reap. They are trained on stone and wood carvings, lacquering and gilding, and silk weaving and painting.

In a country where the average workers earn about a dollar a day, AA is pioneering a new social policy by providing its artisans with contracted monthly pays alongside social and medical benefits.

On top of that, the artisans have formed an association which holds a 20% stake in the company; giving them a role in decision-making.

Today, AA is entirely self-sustainable through its high quality crafts and special projects. It provides employment to over 1,000 people, made up of over 600 artisans.

Team Elevyn in Cambodia

Hi all!

Here’s a long-delayed update from Cambodia, where team Elevyn has been based for over 3 weeks now.

Our journey has taken us from Siem Reap, home of the famous Angkor temples, to the small town of Banlung in Ratanakiri province and ending up in the capital city of Phnom Penh.

We started out in Siem Reap in the middle of March. A gateway to the famous Angkor Wat temples, the city is developing rapidly as a prime tourist destination.

Here, we spent a week with Artisans d’Angkor, a unique company that trains young Cambodian artisans in skills such as stone sculpturing, wood carving and silk painting. Check out the intricately designed silk painting collection by Artisans d’Angkor.

We then made our way to Banlung in the Ratanakiri province of eastern Cambodia. From Phnom Penh, the ride took ten hours on the back of a rickety van on bumpy, gravel roads.

We met up with the Cambodian NTFP Development Organization (CANDO), who are doing some excellent work with the local indigenous groups. CANDO also helps develop market access for crafts produced from the villages, and we’re very excited to be working with them. Look out for CANDO’s collection of scarves on Elevyn very soon!here!

Phnom Penh was our final stop. It’s a bustling, noisy city – typical of most commercial centres. Interestingly, Phnom Penh is also the hub of NGO activity in the country. We met a lot of shops, organizations and people that are doing a lot of good work with the communities.

At time of writing, we’re still in discussions with several organizations that we hope to launch their online shops on Elevyn very soon.

Stay tuned for more updates!