Why We Invested: Away Pallay
R.I.S.E. Artisan Fund announced that the fund has joined Beneficial Returns, an impact investment manager, in an investment improving the livelihoods of Indigenous women weavers in the high Andes of Peru. R.I.S.E. Artisan Fund is participating in the loan that Beneficial Returns has extended to Away Pallay.
Away Pallay is a sustainable textile enterprise based in Cusco, Peru, that works with Indigenous Quechua women weavers to produce hand-woven home décor, accessories, and apparel using ancestral backstrap loom techniques. Partnering with 104 women weavers across four high-Andean communities: Acchahuata, Chalwaccocha, Huaca Huasi, and Huilloc Alto, the enterprise provides dignified, fairly paid work while preserving traditional iconography, natural dyeing practices, and intergenerational knowledge.
The weavers of these High Andes communities can be recognized by their distinctive apparel, reflecting local culture and styles.
Andrea Condori Pumaccchua of Challawaccocha
Benedicta Puma Paucar of Challawaccocha
Paulina Surco Mamani of Acchahuata
Valentina Mamani Chara of Acchuahuata
“At PALLAY, we believe that fashion can be a tool for social transformation and cultural preservation,” explained Co-Founder, Alejandra Rivera. “Since our inception, we have worked alongside women weavers from high-Andean communities to keep alive the ancestral art of backstrap loom weaving—a practice passed down from generation to generation.”
“Our network currently comprises 104 women weavers who find, through their art, an opportunity to strengthen their economic autonomy, preserve their cultural identity, and share the textile richness of the Peruvian Andes with the world,” noted Co-Founder, Marcelo Henríquez. “Each piece created by PALLAY represents hours of artisanal craftsmanship, ancestral knowledge, and a deep connection to the land, traditions, and communities that make our work possible.”
The weavers begin their work by driving stakes into the ground and setting up the warp—the foundation of the textile. Using the backstrap loom—an ancestral technique—they create patterns rich in history, following the design that was co-created beforehand.
In the language of the Andes, "PALLAY" refers to "ancestral iconography"—a language woven from symbols that express the lives, dreams, and emotions of the weavers. Each pattern and figure tells a unique story: a winding river, a towering mountain, the illuminating sun, or a guiding star.
Away Pallay is a sustainable textile enterprise based in Cusco, Peru, that works with Indigenous Quechua women weavers to produce hand-woven home décor, accessories, and apparel using traditional weaving techniques.
Pallay’s products are co-created with the women artisans and sold through premium hospitality and tourism partners, including leading hotels in the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. With the loan from Beneficial Returns, Away Pallay is strengthening its working capital and refinancing local debt to support wholesale relationships, stabilize artisan incomes, and sustain cultural heritage through market-based opportunity.
Beneficial Returns manages impact investment funds that support the growth of social enterprises alleviating poverty and protecting the natural environment in Latin America and Southeast Asia. To date, Beneficial Returns has lent more than $20 million of impact capital to social enterprises that use market-based solutions to reduce poverty and protect the environment.
Ted Levinson, founder and CEO of Beneficial Returns, expressed the need for impact capital to support social enterprises. “We believe that capital – when used consciously – can catalyze positive social change,” he remarked. “The environments in which our borrowers operate are increasingly complex. Climate variability, migration pressures, trade policy uncertainty, and fragile rural economies create challenging conditions. In this context, resilient local enterprises are not just businesses — they are anchors of stability. By providing the right capital at the right time, we help strengthen those anchors.”
“To date, we’ve promoted more than 60 artisan enterprises-–like PALLAY-–that are generating livelihoods for rural communities in Latin America, Africa, and South and Southeast Asia,” commented Ellen Fish, founder of Sprout Enterprise® and the R.I.S.E. Artisan Fund. She continued, “And we’ve provided more than $2.1 million in community development grants and market development support, helping these enterprises generate more than $800,000 in international sales since our start. They're creating livelihoods for more than 15,000 artisans, farmers and shepherds in 17 countries.”
An initiative of Sprout Enterprise®, the R.I.S.E. Artisan Fund invests in artisan enterprises creating sustainable livelihoods for rural communities with few economic alternatives. Women’s empowerment, sustainability, and clean energy innovation are key investment themes of the fund.
Named as one of the Transformative 25 Funds in 2022 and 2021, R.I.S.E. Artisan Fund has been recognized for transforming finance to benefit people and the planet. The fund is a member of Collective Action for Just Finance.
For more information, please visit:
Away Pallay www.pallay.pe.en
If you are a buyer, please contact us for Pallay’s U.S. Linesheet.
Beneficial Returns www.beneficialreturns.com
R.I.S.E. Artisan Fund www.riseartisan.fund
Sprout Enterprise® www.sproutenterprise.net
