Handmade Stories is an online slow fashion brand that makes quality clothing and jewellery for women. The brand was born at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in Peru. Its founder, Elena Brook-Hart was volunteering with women in rural communities of the Andes when the pandemic hit, and despite the volunteering organisation closing operations and asking volunteers to go home, decided to stay and create a platform to help these women and other disadvantaged groups prosper.
Handmade Stories works with women in rural communities who handcraft traditional textiles that are later on incorporated into modern clothing at a family-run factory in Lima, the capital. They work with them following fair trade principles that allow them to work flexibly and without having to leave their community. They also have an open conversation about pricing, and help them set up their own local businesses.
“Now working the fields is not enough and we need support. We have husbands, we have kids, we need to help our husbands because what they bring home is not enough to support our families” says Flora, one of the women Handmade Stories work with.
Handmade Stories also work with a family of Andean jewellery makers who had to close their workshop when the pandemic started, and men in jail who are making a homeware range using traditional textiles.
‘We have open conversations about pricing with the people we work with. Some of them need help calculating their costs and we help them figure out what they should be charging’’ said Elena, founder of Handmade Stories ‘I hope we can see them prosper and help more people who are seeking economic independence’.
Handmade Stories is launching in April in the UK.
