ABSTRACT
This chapter is the first of three chapters that undertake an analysis of the Fair Trade market from the perspective of concepts constituting the theoretical framework of the study. It is devoted to the economic concept of the market. As the foundation of this concept, the contributions of Nobel Prize winner Milton Friedman, leading representative of neoclassical economics and one of the greatest proponents of the free market, convinced about the universalism of the market mechanism, were adopted. The Fair Trade is analysed mainly from the perspective of his views on the economic freedom, price system, pursuit of “self-interest”, and the need to minimize the role of the state in the economy. The economic concept of the market enables to understand many, but not all, aspects of the specifics of the Fair Trade market. Its emergence and dynamic development may be considered a manifestation of economic freedom and example of the self-regulatory capacity of the market. It may also be perceived as a bottom-up counteraction of market imperfections and a new, marketized form of charity and developmental aid. This concept also provides the space and arguments for government support of the Fair Trade market.
