Teotitlan is the main producer and marketing center for these wool textiles, making it one of the most prosperous indigenous communities that depends on a handcraft. Tourism to the town began in the 1970s, which gave it its status as an outlet for the even smaller communities around it. The town and surrounding communities still speak Zapotec and marketers have worked to project an image of a single Zapotec community (though the smaller communities tend to produce pieces that show variations). This marketing has led to a class system among the Zapotec in the area, with the middlemen in Teotitlan in tension with producers even before goods reach outside hands.
