Behind every handmade product is a person, a family and a story. That belief sits at the heart of Noah’s Ark Fair Trade Artisans, India one of leading Fair Trade organisations and a producer whose work Voyage Fair Trade has proudly supported for many years.
From recycled metal sculptures and decorative home accessories to beautifully handcrafted gifts, Noah’s Ark helps skilled artisans earn a fair living while preserving traditional craftsmanship that has been passed down through generations.
When you purchase a Noah’s Ark product, you are not simply buying an ornament or gift. You are helping support artisan families, community projects and a more ethical way of doing business.
A Fair Trade Organisation Built on Hope
Noah’s Ark International Exports was founded in 1986 by Samuel Masih in Moradabad, northern India.
The city is often known as India’s “Brass City” because of its long history of metal craftsmanship. For generations, talented artisans have created beautiful handmade products, yet many struggled to earn a fair income from their work.
Artisans were often paid low wages, faced financial insecurity and lacked the resources needed to grow their businesses.
Samuel believed there had to be a better way.
He established Noah’s Ark to create fair, long-term trading relationships that would allow artisans to earn a dignified income while preserving traditional skills that might otherwise disappear.
Today Noah’s Ark remains the first and only WFTO-certified fair trade exporter in Moradabad.
Supporting Artisan Families
For more than 25 years, Noah’s Ark has helped hundreds of artisan families improve their lives through fair trade.
The organisation provides:
• Fair wages that exceed many local industry standards
• Reliable long-term work opportunities
• Advance payments to reduce financial pressure
• Training and business development support
• Access to healthcare initiatives
• Educational opportunities for artisan families
• Community development projects
This support allows artisans to focus on developing their skills while creating a more secure future for their families.
Empowering Women Through Fair Trade
Many of the artisans working with Noah’s Ark are women.
The opportunity to work from home allows them to earn an income while continuing to care for their children and families.
For many households, fair trade has provided greater financial independence, increased opportunities and improved access to education for future generations.
The impact extends far beyond the products themselves.
Preserving Traditional Craftsmanship
One of the greatest challenges facing traditional crafts is that younger generations often leave these professions when they can no longer provide a sustainable livelihood.
Noah’s Ark helps ensure these valuable skills continue to thrive.
By creating international markets for artisan-made products, the organisation helps preserve techniques and traditions that have been part of Indian culture for generations.
Each handmade item represents not only creativity and craftsmanship but also the continuation of a cultural heritage that deserves to be protected.
Education and Community Projects
In 2000, Noah’s Ark expanded its work by creating the Noah’s Ark Handicrafts & Artisan Welfare Society.
This charitable initiative supports projects including:
• Education programmes for children
• Evening schools in rural communities
• Clean water projects
• Health and wellbeing initiatives
• Skills training and capacity building
These programmes help create opportunities that extend far beyond fair trade itself.
Why We Work with Noah’s Ark
At Voyage Fair Trade, we believe products should have meaning.
That is why we choose to work with organisations like Noah’s Ark that place people and communities at the centre of everything they do.
Their commitment to fair wages, ethical production and community development aligns closely with our own values.
When our customers choose a Noah’s Ark product, they are choosing craftsmanship, sustainability and a trading system that puts people before profit.
Explore Noah’s Ark Products
Browse our collection of Noah’s Ark handmade gifts and discover beautifully crafted products that combine creativity, sustainability and positive social impact.
Every purchase helps support artisan families and keeps traditional craftsmanship alive for future generations.
Noah’s Ark is based in Moradabad, a city just outside the Indian capital Delhi. The city has a population of 700,000 in which more than half are involved in the metal handicrafts trade, but the industry has long been plagued with injustice: artisans are paid low wages, forced to pay commissions to exporters, and must self-finance raw materials needed to complete orders. As the cost of metal has become prohibitively high and the international market has evolved, artisans must invest in diversifying beyond Moradabad’s signature brass crafts, though many fall victim to bad debt or shop closure. Trades passed down from one generation to another form an important part of India’s culture. Yet the heritage and tradition of handicrafts is increasingly threatened as insufficient profits force marginalized artisans to seek other professions.
After six years of witnessing the struggles of artisans first hand, Samuel Masih established Noah’s Ark International Exports in 1986 to change the foundation of the exporter-artisan relationship from fear to trust in an effort to raise the artisans out of poverty and preserve their livelihood. Noah’s Ark is the first and only Fair Trade certified exporter (member of WFTO and FTF India) in Moradabad. The company has supported artisans and their families with fair wages 10-15% higher than local wages, long-term business investment and collaboration, and health and education initiatives for over 25 years. An NGO, Noah’s Ark Handicrafts & Artisan Welfare Society, was created in 2000 to advance the charitable activities of the organization, which now include clean water, education, health and capacity building initiatives. Through our work, we give an identity to the artisan’s craft and help them to appreciate the value of their products while ensuring they have the skills and resources to succeed in a changing market. Like the biblical story of Noah’s Ark that symbolizes the concept of saving mankind, we strive to save the art of making handicrafts.
Most of the artisans are women, who benefit from the fact that they can work from home and maintain their responsibilities for children and the home. Noah’s Ark provides benefits such as education and medical treatment for artisans and their families. Below shows an event at a school supported and funded by Noah’s Ark.
All information has been supplied by Noah’s Ark and you can read more about them on their own website