Over the last few weeks we conducted a series of case studies with clients who bring ethical manufacturing to the forefront of their businesses. This week we speak to Chilpa founder Maru Rojas, who is an advocate for slow fashion. The company specialises in selling Handmade, fair trade Mexican Roozbos and Textiles, promoting the craft of Mexican artisans. You can find Chilpa products at the V&A’s Frida Kahlo exhibition which opens in London on the 16th of June.
Can you tell me about Chilpa, and where the idea to build a business around a creative studio came from?
We’ve been going for fours years. I’m from Mexico, and I’ve always wanted to run my own business that was ethical and fair-trade. So I began working with artisans from Mexico and that’s how it started!
Why is ethical manufacturing such an important part of your business?
All of the products are hand-made, some designed by me and all made with traditional artisanal techniques, and that kind of approach drives the business itself. We don’t sell any non-handmade goods.
What are you most proud of?
I am actually taking maternity leave from next week, so we’re going to have to pause it for a while and that is a bit daunting. But at the same time we’ve had a really big wholesale order for the V&A’s Frida Kahlo exhibition, so that’s a really big thing that’s coming for this year and I’m really happy to be able to promote the skill and work of the artisans we work with on such a scale.
Your Experience With Stitched Boxes
What features do you like most about Stitched Boxes and our service?
The fact that there are no minimum quantity orders. We’re a small business so we can place small orders that works for us at that point. We also like that it’s a UK based business.
How has your experience been so far?
Good, the process of getting the quotes and putting an order has always been very straight forward, and I think I’ve been dealing with the same person since the start which is good.
Sometimes with slightly bigger companies you send an email to someone, and someone else will reply and you never speak to the same person and end up going in circles – that can be quite frustrating. That’s not the case with you guys at all; it’s good to always be dealing with one or two people so that they know your name and what you’re doing. The products are great, they are well priced and again if we need 50 boxes we can order 50, if we need 500 we can order 500.
Were we able to address any specific problems in terms of packaging for your company?
Yes. I had boxes made that fit within the Royal Mail’s large letter size, and that obviously reduces our packaging and posting costs. We’ve had two boxes made, and the two of them fit in the Royal mail’s large letter sizes which is perfect.
Would you recommend us to other businesses?
Yes, definitely!