Trade Fairly at Dianbaar

Dianbaar opened shop in the City Market in early December of 2007, offering a different and unique type of product to the City Market customers. Dianbaar, owned and operated by Cherif and Kimberly Ba, features fair trade and recycled gifts from Africa.

The Ba’s began selling art for friends of Cherif Ba, a native of Senegal in Africa. As they continued to do this, they decided it was important and beneficial to the local and African communities to support free trade. Upon opening Dianbaar at the City Market, they introduced the Indianapolis community to custom-made African art and the idea of fair trade.

“The neat thing about fair trade and what we do is that each piece we sell has its own story. Most of our items are primarily made by women, but each gift represents a story of a community that we are choosing to support by making these items available to purchase here,” says Kimberly Ba.

Dianbaar is unique in that it offers the opportunity to African individuals to produce and sell their art for living wages so they can support their families. Fair trade also fights against child labor and supports sustainable practices that minimize our environmental footprint.

The Ba’s purchase all of their art from the Fair Trade Federation. The FTF certifies that all artists adhere to strict environmental conditions, not harming or polluting the environment. Dianbaar was certified by Co-Op America in April, making them a part of the National Green Pages. This honor certifies that they are a business socially and environmentally friendly.

Dianbaar supports a dozen communities in Africa and local charities. Dianbaar donates a portion of sales to Gleaner’s Food Bank and Cobert Place, both local charities, supporting the Indianapolis area. Dianbaar is not only supporting local and distant communities, but it is also giving Indianapolis natives an opportunity to connect with different cultures right in the heart of its historic City Market.