The Hilt is a symbiotic combination of lo-tech, ecologically-sound production and modern business models. The raw materials are handmade by Hmong hilltribes people in the Golden Triangle and we purchase directly from them, benefiting the primary producers and eliminating fat cat middlemen. Our primary production facility is a family-run operation by a rather surly, but good-hearted, local Thai Muslim woman and her good-natured husband plus their extended network of family members.