Madres & Artesanas: Bolivian Mothers Producing New York Couture

In a nutshell:
What they make: Private label knitted garments for designer brands (Oscar de la Renta, among others)

How they make a difference: They fight poverty and empower women by giving them a chance to create and market high end fashion without leaving their families behind.
Who they help: Women in Bolivia
Where to buy their products: Private label only

Where they are: La Paz, Bolivia.

Beauty is the details. And some of the details that make New York Fashion week the spectacle that it is, are handmade in the Andes by hard-working Bolivian mothers. These women use their artistic knitting abilities to provide a better future to their families. How does this happen? Through Madres & Artesanas (M&A), a Bolivian company that acts like a liaison between high-end international designer brands and artisans in Bolivia. They train women in different techniques like macramé, crochet, loom,  and artistic knitting in order to produce items that range from ponchos and sweaters to woven wire jewelry. The company is a cluster of small business units managed by and comprised of women that after said training, work together to deliver unique products that meet international fashion standards.  This company has a very special place in my heart, not only because of their excellent business model and high quality products, but also because of the great impact they are having in my own country, Bolivia.

Oscar de la Renta, Polo by Ralph Lauren and Diane von Furstenberg are some of the brands they work with

Motherhood as a drive for progress

Founder Yelka Maric told CNN how children are a fundamental drive and motivator for women to believe in themselves and their ability to create a better future. That's what all the women working for Madres y Artesanas share: their desire and determination to build great lives for their children. That's no easy task in Bolivia, a country with one of the lowest wages in the Americas and with constant social and political instability. Most employment options become impossible when women become mothers. Services like daycare are considered a luxury. Single and abandoned mothers -and there are many in Bolivia- have an even harder time trying to provide for their families. 

Screen capture from M&A's profile by CNN en español
Take a close look; the lady is knitting!

Fueled by innate artisan knitting skills and determination, women find at Madres Artesanas not only jobs and a way to support their families, but also a way to feel empowered. Many of them have been physically or emotionally abused, many have been abandoned, some are supporting sick family members or fighting health problems themselves. What they all have in common is the love for their children and the strong desire to give them better lives. Everyone has the option to work from home or to bring their kids to the M&A workshop, which is a safe environment where food, shelter and babies' laughter are always provided. 

The business model and its impact
M&A produces private label garments for limited-edition lines for designers like Oscar de la Renta, Zero + Maria Cornejo, Figue and Calypso St. Barth. The brands they work with change every season; they are currently working on prototypes for Michael Kors and Narciso Rodriguez and have made pieces for Donna Karan, Diane von Furstenberg, Ralph Lauren, and Nicole Miller in the past. Private label manufacturing entails producing each piece exactly as per product specifications, using the client's labels and accessories and meeting the most rigorous quality standards. The company works through a sales and marketing partner in New York City, who acts as a link between the designers and the company's headquarters in La Paz, Bolivia. Once the orders are coordinated and placed, it is up to founder Yelka Maric and her micro-business collective to make it happen.  

Founder Yelka Maric (left) with some of
M&A's workers and their kids 

M&A's business model is deeply intertwined with its mission of empowering women. Workers at M&A are not only trained in the different production techniques they provide; they are also equipped to manage the micro-business units themselves, getting training in management, quality control and leadership. Their mission shapes the company starting at recruiting; where preference is given to single, divorced, abandoned and widowed mothers.

Production is divided among small business units. Each business unit is managed individually, but under the same mission and sharing the same quality standards. Artisans produce a prototype of each product at their workshops and then continue production at their own pace, be it form home or on location. As long as quality standards and deadlines are met, each artisan is free to manage their own time as they see fit and as per the requirements of managing their own families. Once the products are finished, and thoroughly inspected, they are returned to headquarters to be inspected one more time and ultimately exported to the US.

Thanks to this endeavor, over 200 women (and their families!) live stable, empowered, dignified lives. They take pride on the beautiful pieces they make and have the motivation (and opportunities) to build the lives they want to live.

Sounds like a great project, but SHOW ME THE FASHION!
The garments M&A create are swoon-worthy. They use many different techniques like macrame (put simply, creating patterns by making knots instead of knitting), crochet, hand knitting, hand loom knitting machine knitting and bobbin lace. They make anything from dresses, sweaters, and shawls to ponchos and capes. This video shows you the techniques they work with and the workshop in action. In terms of materials, they use all types of wools and high-end fibers like alpaca, angora and silk. Check out more styles at the end of the post!

"Not charity, just work"
Madres y Artesanas is another example of what this slogan represents. "Not charity just work" is the slogan of the United Nation's Ethical Fashion Initiative and the mantra of his creator, Simone Cipriani. Their business model is very similar to M&A's and it can be one of the most inspiring and effective ways to drive progress and empower women in developing nations. The Ethical Fashion Initiative is having an enormous impact in Ghana, Haiti and Kenya.

I find it very interesting to see how each country can utilize some of their innate artisanal skills and cultural legacy to create beautiful pieces that help shape fashion movements around the world. In Bolivia, Madres y Artesanas creating handmade textiles for American brands. In Africa, they use traditional beading and screen printing techniques for European and Australian brands. Both projects utilize the fashion industry to empower women.

The Future
Madres y Artesanas nexts steps are to establish their own brand. Some of their pieces can already be purchased in some select Bolivian stores like Mistura, a brand new fashion store located in La Paz that showcases some of Bolivia's most innovative brands. Madres y Artesanas shows some of the best things my country has to offer: hard working people and amazing natural fibers. I can't wait to see more from them! Their impact in Bolivia is as wonderful as their clothes are gorgeous:

Photo credits: Madres y Artesanas website and Facebook page.

ITC's Ethical Fashion Initiative: Not Charity, Just Work

Stella McCartney, Vivienne Westwood, Sass & Bide, Stella Jean and Ilaria Venturini Fendi's Carmina Campus share a fashion-forward trend: wearable progress.

All of these innovative fashion powerhouses work with one of the most brilliant initiatives in the world: the Ethical Fashion Initiative.

A branch of the United Nation's International Trade Centre, the Ethical Fashion Initiative (EFI) is a project that in addition to supplying beautifully crafted, top quality items to high-end brands, is changing thousands of lives in Africa and Haiti. EFI utilizes the power of fashion & style as a vehicle out of poverty. 

Created and headed by Simone Cipriani, a passionate Italian fair-trade advocate and leather industry expert, this organization acts as a hub between marginalized communities in Africa and luxury brands around the world.  They allow artisans to produce fashion accessories that meet the standards of any other global fashion supply chain agent. Both the EFI and the more than 7,000 artisans they work with take pride on creating high quality pieces that come with a great story behind them.

The organization's motto: "Not Charity, Just Work" embodies everything that this blog is about. 

How does it work?

EFI creates hubs (located in Kenya, Uganda, Haiti and soon Rwanda) that are entirely self-sustainable incubators. These incubators foster a number of small enterprises and cooperatives made up of micro-producers and artisans. The hub provides ongoing training, technical support, mentorship, logistical support, quality control and of course, the link to their clients: the fashion industry. The enterprises revolve around the importance of quality control and on-time delivery. They work on the standards of high-end fashion , not of charity buys.

In parallel, Mr Cipriani and his team travel the world meeting their contacts within the fashion industry showing them the business model they have built: one where quality will never have to be sacrificed for the sake of having a genuine and meaningful social impact.  He shows the different sustainable and mostly organic or recycled materials they work with (from cart parts to recycled mosquito nets) and the different traditional and non-traditional skills they posses. Overall he presents them with a compelling opportunity to add a story of progress to their products' spec sheet.

Then, fashion brands with a vision and passion for fostering progress take him up to the challenge. Mr Cipriani oversees and adjusts the work at the different hubs and EFI delivers beautiful products that make it to the most coveted runways.

What do they make?

Handbags, tote bags, key chains, metal clasps for handbags, and other fashion accessories. I am sure I may be leaving off some categories.  You should check out their Facebook page; they always have some beautiful examples of their work. 

The Impact and why they're succeeding

EFI has created a real, viable, business model that provides employment, dignity and a reliable income to marginalized people that want to change their lives. Work gives them respect, confidence and helps them provide their families and communities a brighter tomorrow. It empowers women and helps them show their sons and daughters that hard work can pay off and result in happy, fulfilling lives.  They don't discriminate against men, but 90% of their workers are women, promoting gender equality in areas where the concept is almost a fantasy.

As they state on their website: "Everything we do is underwritten by solid economics and a strict code of ethics.While our production is 100% ethical and with a strong focus on environmental protection, this is not a niche "eco-fashion" project, instead a vast initiative reaching out to 7,000 artisans and across the world to fashion partners from Rome to Rio to Tokyo."  My favorite is the "underwritten by solid economics" part. Such an objective focus will allow them to make this a sustainable project.

Currently, they provide work for over 7,000 people. According to the New York Times, "EFI impact assessment shows that one person’s income supports at least 6 to 7 family members, often enabling children to have a first opportunity of education." This will bring the total impact to up to 49,000 people - and counting! 

This is definitely a fresh and, in my opinion, more effective approach than the traditional bureaucratic development practices.  “All these people who work in development – they want to build something and I have seen the waste of money, in Africa, in Asia, everywhere, by international organisations, by bilateral corporations, by charities, by foundations,” Mr Cipriani said in an interview for the Australian Financial Review. I agree. I have seen it in my own country, Bolivia. There are several well-intentioned, yet not economics-driven initiatives that remain good intentions due to a lack of objective market analysis. “The model where you invest only in capacity building is wrong. It’s the market that matters and it’s solely the market. These big structures will never work. The only thing which works is to create capacity to access the market.” He continued,  referring to the importance of not just creating a supply, but making sure that that supply meets the requirements and particularities of the demand. It's this focus what has allowed this initiative to get where they are and what will allow it to continue growing.

What's next?

EFI wants to reach 20,000 people in the next five years. Additionally, Mr Cipriani has a dream "that Hermès will one day use the hub’s 100 per cent natural leather tanned by tree bark". I think it would be an excellent idea for a limited-edition line. In the meantime, I would LOVE to see one of these hubs in South America. Specifically in the Andes. I may be biased; coming from La Paz, the highest capital in the world, I grew up surrounded by these beautiful mountains. However, bias aside, the Andes have hard-working artisans AND also super luxurious natural fibers like alpaca and vicuña. I can only imagine what the EFI could do in countries like Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador. 

Photo credits: International Trade Centre's  Ethical Fashion Initiative Website and Facebook Page.