Women’s Cottage Industries
Examples of cottage industries include furniture manufacturing or restoration; catering; crafting fiber arts, pottery, metal art, jewelry, or other crafts; or service businesses.Our support takes many forms. As a grantmaking organization, we give grassroots-type awards, generally ranging from $2,000–5,000, to nonprofit organizations and programs that strengthen and support groups of three or more women coming together to develop cottage industries within their local communities.
Our 2008 and 2009 grantee organizations are:
- Art for the Heart, Penasco
- Artesanos de Questa, Questa
- Yucca Creations Colonias Development Council, Chaparral Family Development Center, Chaparral
- Empowering Our Communities/Snack Runner Enterprises, Bernalillo
- Espanola Valley Fiber Arts Center, Espanola
- Jemez Fiber Arts, Jemez Springs
- Kewa Co-op, Santa Domingo Pueblo
- Magdalena Arts, Magdalena
- Palomas Family Cooperative, Columbus
- The Promised Land, Estancia
- Sew Right, Albuquerque
- Southwest Creations Collaborative, Albuquerque
- Southwest Women’s Fiber Arts Collective, Silver City
- Tejedoras de las Trampas, Las Trampas
- Torreon Community Store, Torreon
- Traditional Native American Farmers Association, Tesuque Pueblo
- Tres Manos, a program of CAA of Southern NM, San Miguel
- Warehouse 21, Santa Fe
- Women’s Global Pathways, Albuquerque
- Women’s Intercultural Center, Anthony
Alongside our grantmaking, we provide education and mentoring in areas such as business planning, organizational development, English Language skills, and fundraising through the WE Learn™ Program. We help women develop and market their products, open shops, and learn the art of display and merchandising. Our third strategy is to create innovative product venues, including our Rag Rug Festivals & Design Collectives, and cultivate partnerships with community museums throughout the state in support of women artisans and their crafting.
