An artisan from Michoacán saw the sales of her hand-embroidered napkins soar after a local business owner promoted her work on Facebook.

Doña Adela Vidales, a Purépecha woman from the town of Turícuaro, was sitting in downtown Uruapan looking dispirited when Leopoldo Álvarez saw her.

A Purépecha himself from Pamatácuaro, Álvarez felt moved to ask her what was wrong.

“She looked sad. I took two photos of her back and I asked her why she was sad, and she told me that she hadn’t sold anything . . .” he said in an interview with the newspaper Milenio.

Later, he posted the photos he had taken on Facebook, writing: “Doña Adela was sad because she hadn’t sold her artisanal napkins, and I told her that I was going to promote her products on social media . . . I invite you all to buy from her, she works in downtown Uruapan . . .”

The next day, Doña Adela’s napkins sold out.

As of Tuesday, Álvarez’s post had earned over 2,500 likes and 619 comments, and had been shared more than 8,000 times.

“I didn’t think it would have such reach,” he said.

After many followers asked him how to contact Doña Adela, he went to Turícuaro to find her.

“I went back to see her and we spoke. She told me that the next day . . . she went to work and sold everything that day and even finished early . . . people even wanted to take pictures with her,” Álvarez said.

The owner of a catering business, Álvarez said he was happy to help Doña Adela.

He said he plans to promote the work of all artisans of his hometown of Pamatácuaro, who make wooden spoons, whisks and palm frond baskets.

“I’d like to benefit my community, the artisans, that was my intention with Doña Adela, because there are many more artisans like her who live off their sales.”

Source: Milenio (sp)