Crown Agents supported the Traditiza (Tradition) Foundation in its efforts to help socially excluded Bulgarian artisans to use their skills in order to help themselves. Traditzia promotes handicrafts created by children's art therapy groups in social institutions, people with disabilities and artisans in remote villages. Their products, which bear the spirit of Bulgarian traditions, can be exchanged for a donation in the Traditzia Foundation's gallery.

On Friday, 17^th of February, 2006 the team of the Crown Agents’ Bulgarian Customs Modernisation Programme and their partners and friends spent at the gallery a night of shopping, sharing and goodwill. The event contributed significantly to the cause of Traditzia and the artisans, who made the gifts.

The guests of the event, which was called “Soiree for a Social Cause”, were welcomed by the Crown Agents’ Principal Customs Advisor and Team Leader, Frank Ferguson, and Mrs. Katie Hill, chairperson of the Traditzia Foundation and wife of the British ambassador. The ambassador himself also attended the evening and bought items from the gallery.

The event was the first of its kind because this was the first time when such an evening was supported by a private company and its staff. The Traditiza Foundation hopes that the other companies in Bulgaria will follow the example of Crown Agents and will also organise similar events.

The Crown Agents also helped Traditizia to draw the attention of the media to its noble cause. The Bulgarian National Television broadcasted in its central news bulletin a special TV report about the event. The “24 Hours” Daily, one of the major Bulgarian newspapers, and the Sofia Echo, which is a respected English-language newspaper in Bulgaria, published on their social pages pictures and brief information about the evening.