7 Loaves History

7 Loaves was founded in August of 2001 by Chad Cleveringa with the vision to build an innovative, profitable organization whose primary mission was to facilitate growth. Christian Striffler, our Chief Operations Officer, joined the company in the summer of 2002. Robin Martini, our Director of Artisan Development joined the company in the summer of 2006. Sara Lifsey, our Senior Administrator, joined the company in January 2007. We have since added several other staff members and continue to grow.

The name, 7 Loaves, comes from the Biblical story of Jesus miraculously feeding a large crowd with 7 loaves of bread and a few fish. The metaphor or story line is that “exponential provision and growth” was delivered for all the participants. is that “exponential provision and growth” was delivered for all the participants. (see story from wikipedia)

In 2001, 7 Loaves manifested itself as a progressive online book retailer, with a focus in the Christian book market. In 2005, 7 Loaves transitioned to focusing solely on selling quality, unique, hand made artisan products from 3rd world contexts.

This evolutionary process began in March 2004 when Chad Cleveringa made his third trip to the northern Brazilian state of Rondonia. Visiting Amazon Indian tribes, he discovered the significant dependence villagers had on the sale of handicrafts for economic survival. Admiring hand carved miniature canoes, he also realized that many of these artisans were disadvantaged women. Furthermore, they were dependent on river traders who often bought the crafts at an unfair price. Hence the necessary direction of 7 Loaves was laid out in those real world realizations.

Today 7 Loaves is an economic bridge for export dollars to be brought into the communities of artisan producers through partnership with other US retail stores, and through the 7 Loaves retail website. And as part of our expanding artisan network, 7 Loaves has ongoing site visits to producers within the major third world regions including Africa, Latin America, and Asia. We also have a non-profit, Ruth’s Harvest, which assists the artisans in economic development, basic needs, education, and health care assistance.

If you would like to suggest an artisan or producer group that produces great products and has a mission driven story, please email us at customerservice@7loaves.com or via the contact us form.

Additionally, if you know of a retail store in your area that would be interested in carrying our products, let us know! We look forward to hearing from you!