Farmington, CT - Three new brands with a unique socially responsible theme have been launched by New England Mercantile Group, LLC (NEMG) www.nemercantile.com, a Connecticut based global sourcing company.

"The brands - Eartheon, Mogul's, and Sheshum - offer high-end art pieces such as sculpture and furniture targeting residential and commercial design and building projects," said Azam Saeed, president of NEMG. "Through these brands, we are encouraging the preservation of native cultures around the world by promoting sumptuous artistic items representing their heritage. Some of the product lines are absolutely museum-quality. We also maintain very high standards regarding ecological and labor practices. It is all a manifestation of our company philosophy of kyosei - all people living and working together for the common good."

Eartheon offers items such as mosaics and stone sculptures. Mogul's puts forward architectural art glass and even commissioned works of art. Sheshum offers hand-carved furniture in fine woods representing Indian and Chinese heritage styles from the Mughal, Ming, and Qing eras.

The company plans to market these brands nationally to construction, interior design, and architectural firms.

"We were not surprised when the market research conducted by our consulting firm pointed to a strong demand for higher-end products with a solid ethic of social responsibility," said Katherine MacCall-Fruin, marketing manager at NEMG. "To have a viable business that promotes the common good is most rewarding."

Concerns about environmental and labor practices are central in the mind of today's upscale customer who buys such imported items. NEMG works closely with its affiliates in this regard. This cooperative verification process, combined with requisite certifications - such as the ISO 14000 family of environmental standards and the SA 8000 family of labor standards, ensures the regularity of high labor and environmental practices.

As a symbol of its commitment to the principles of kyosei, and to provide practical social support to communities in the United States and the other countries where NEMG has operations, the company has also established the Kysoei Fund. NEMG will deposit a portion of its revenues into the fund for disbursement to social organizations or projects that meet the defined qualifications.

Saeed, an MBA from University of Michigan, highlighted the impetus behind his company's approach: "The current paradigm of globalization has too many dimensions that are clearly harmful to human society. Human and ecological mistreatment, unfair trade practices, and product standardization driven by commercial imperatives of consumerism are but a few examples. NEMG intends to be a positive driver of globalization, promoting economic activity that does justice to our long-term ecological and societal interests."

As a global strategic sourcing company, NEMG works with companies large and small in countries such as China, Pakistan, and India. Some of them are very small enterprises - no more than a couple of artists. The various skills practiced by these artists are often region specific. Unfortunately, as the interest of the native populations in their own heritage is dwindling, many of these art forms are rapidly disappearing from the horizon. NEMG plans to soon extend its supplier network to Central and South American countries.

"We excel in presenting traditional techniques and styles in a modern context, making it feasible, and even desirable, to combine various styles and art forms within a single environment," said MacCall-Fruin. "In some cases, our product development concept may even use the traditional style as an underlying theme for current designs, adding a distinctive twist to essentially contemporary shapes and environments."

"While all cultures draw from their own roots, it is cross-cultural pollination that really is the lifeblood of civilizations," says Saeed.

About NEMG

New England Mercantile Group, LLC (www.nemercantile.com) is a Connecticut-based strategic product sourcing company and contract manufacturing expert. A global sourcing company with offices in Asia, NEMG functions in a wide range of industrial sectors, from design and architecture to textiles and sporting goods.

Brief Background on Drivers of Corporate Social Responsibility

Price WaterhouseCoopers, in a study entitled "2002 Sustainability Survey Report," listed enhanced reputation, competitive advantage, and cost savings as the top reasons why corporate America is tilting towards sustainable practices. Interestingly, the report projected that customer demand will be the top anticipated driver of such practices in the future.

By generating demand for the work of indigenous artists, NEMG intends to apply principles of sustainability to human as well as environmental issues and concerns.

Problems associated with global climate change are well known in our society. Not so commonly known are threats faced by world's cultures. In Brazil alone, during the 20th century, more than 90 tribes are known to have disappeared. Along with them also vanished the knowledge and wisdom gathered over thousands of years that passed through oral tradition from generation to generation. UNESCO estimates that 96% of the world's languages are spoken by only 4% of its population; and that one language disappears every two weeks. Linguists predict that of nearly 7,000 known languages in the world today, well over half would cease to exist by the end of the century.

Consumer interest, nurtured by firms like NEMG, can have an impact in sustaining the economic viability of endangered cultural heritage around the world.

New England Mercantile Group, LLC

New England Mercantile Group, LLC

New England Mercantile Group is a Connecticut based strategic sourcing company. A global company with offices in Asia, we function in a wide range of industrial sectors. In addition to being a strategic product sourcing company to some of our clients, we also offer exquisite products under our own brand names.

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