About

On April 4th, 2010 Monique Teggelove woke up with the vision of Papillon Reizen and Papillon Fairtrade. Three months later Papillon Reizen had been founded. It took ten more years for Papillon Fairtrade to be founded.

Monique was born and raised in The Netherlands. After having travelled around the globe for about five years, and having set foot on every continent, she settled in Mali in 2010 and founded Papillon Reizen travel agency. She ran and built the company with her local team, despite of - and thanks to - a multitude of external events and crises. These included military coups, health crises, rebellions, jihadist threats and foreign military interventions. Resilience and the flexibility to adapt to new situation were key.

During the 2020 worldwide crisis - and a military coup in Mali that same year - the activities of Papillon Reizen came to a standstill. Wondering what to do, the plan got shape to bring Mali to the world. Together with the people of the Papillon Reizen team, she set to work to create virtual tours. Monique had no idea yet that this would be the start of the second company she had had a vision of in 2010.

Papillon Fairtrade was founded as a Dutch company. It offers virtual tours and experiences, handmade quality products, one-of-a-kind necklaces made by Monique, and books about Monique’s travels.

Being a social entrepreneur has always been important to Monique. Therefore fair prices are paid to all involved, and part of the revenues is given back to the people.

Together we make the world a better place.