Sojourns

Sojourns at 20th Street North in December 2007

Sojourns is a store and gallery located in the Eubank Mercantile Building at 2017 3rd Avenue North and owned by Melissa Kendrick. The business features crafts, decorative objects, baskets, food, musical instruments, toys, jewelry and textiles created by fairly-compensated artisans in Vietnam, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Burkina Faso, Kenya, Peru, Guatemala and other countries. The store's slogan "Adventure-Art-Peace" is derived from the "five qualities of civilization" described by English mathematician and philosopher Alfred North Whitehead.

The store sells objects imported under the certification of the Fair Trade Federation, which ensures a living wage paid to the artisans, and also supports projects that improve education and environmental protection. Sojourns is the first 100% Fair Trade store in Alabama. In addition to regular hours, it hosts special events in concert with the Birmingham International Festival and the Foundation for Sustainable Travel.

It was first opened on October 25, 2005 in a 600 square-foot space in the Atrium Building at 1910 3rd Avenue North. It moved to a new, larger, location at 217 20th Street North on November 6, 2007. On September 1, 2010, Sojourns relocated to its current spot.

References

• Sepsas, Niki (2005) "The Sojourn Story: Adventure-Art-Peace" [1] - Birmingham Magazine, accessed April 15, 2006
• Lippeatt, Lauren (February 15, 2010) "Risky Small Business - Part I - Sojourns" Pavo
• Eyob, Beza (December 6, 2019) "How Melissa Kendrick and Sojourns are bringing the world to Birmingham." Birmingham Business Journal

External link

• Sojourns website