Secret sale Item

It was over 10 years ago now that I met my friend Roberto out in Otavalo. My
Ecuadorian friend Oscar and I were just talking about starting up a socially conscious company that could help marginalized communities in Northern Ecuador, when we by chance met Roberto who would soon become a huge part of our success. Roberto was and is a traditional Otavalanian who happens to be from the generation were this community has been most effected by globalization. A very difficult time for a young man in a traditional community. This generation was forced to adapt to changing times and watch centeries of tradition be altered forever, or become irelavent and live the life as a monument of the past. For example the traditional language is Quechua but since the advent of computers in school their traditional language had to take a back seat to Spanish as keyboards were not set up to accommodate their alphabet. The issues Roberto and his family had to face was one of generational divide. Roberto's parents had worn the traditional garb all thier lives. Otavalanian men used White pants, a white shirt, blue pancho, black shoe/slippers and a stiff wool hat. Meanwhile the woman had embroderd white blouses, a blue skirt and gold painted beads that represented thier social states and wealth. Then comes Roberto's generation that is now wearing more comfortalbe shoes imported from the states, europe, or Asia. As well as cloths you and I would be caught wearing. As goods and information become more available for the first time, tradition was put by the wayside. You all know the story, globalization, it has its positive and negative effects. Anyway Roberto took the traditional Ecuadorian product and made it more available for exportation. As we started working with him, he went from a one room showroom with some looms in his fathers house to a three story house and manufacturing plant. We started with a 100 scarves and now sell about 12,000 a year. Later we started carrying his ruanas (poncho wraps) which leads us into the Secret Sale Item for the day. From 6pm Tuesday until 6pm Wednesday we will have all ruanas or ponchos 50% off. It is a great way of celebrating our long relationship with this bright Ecuadorian socially conscious business man. Roberto is one of South American Secrets many cool stories behind the product.