I want to support the local economy of the Philippines with fashionable eco-items born from waste materials.
When I visited the Philippines 10 years ago, I happened to learn that local women are involved in the recycling and use of aluminum materials for regional revitalization. A local NGO launched a campaign to make a living for local residents with products made from collected recycled materials, and this movement spread throughout the country, creating jobs in impoverished areas and supporting the operation of local schools.
I happened to have a chance to visit the workshop of an NGO. There, they collected and cleaned aluminum packs of juices and other items that they had finished drinking, and used the materials to make bags, sandals, and other items. I was shocked by the pile of sparkling aluminum ribbons, the sight of the women knitting them by hand one by one, and the beauty of the bags they made. It was love at first sight.
At the time, I was living in Singapore, and in Southeast Asia, where there is a lot of rain and humidity, leather and vinyl materials can quickly become moldy, and cloth products can get wet when they are exposed to severe squalls, so I had a hard time choosing a bag. I came across aluminum unexpectedly, and it was exactly the ideal bag material for me. As soon as I took it back to Singapore and used it, it was well received by my friends around me, and it quickly spread by word of mouth, leading to pop-up shops at cafes, restaurants, hotels, etc.
I wanted to create something more fashionable and easy to use than the standard bags made by many NGOs in the Philippines, and I wanted to work together to develop a sustainable brand with added value that could not be imitated by others, so I began to propose bag designs using my experience working as a buying coordinator at a major department store in Japan.
Each piece is handmade by Filipino women