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Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.

What Happens When Heritage Craft Meets Global Ambition

From handmade beadwork to woven bags, small, traditional artisans that create products via ancestral methods find themselves weighing if it’s possible to grow their businesses without sacrificing their integrity.
The Ghanian label Aaks makes baskets and bags by hand with local raffia.
The Ghanian label Aaks makes baskets and bags by hand with local raffia. (Courtesy)
By
  • Petala Ironcloud

Drive 75 minutes northeast of San Diego’s tony La Jolla neighbourhood, and beachy vistas transform into the verdant Palomar Mountain, where luxury gives way to reservation land — a different kind of richness.

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Further Reading

The Rise of the Indigenous Model

The four years since Quannah ChasingHorse was discovered by a Calvin Klein scouting director have seen a wave of Native talent appear on magazine covers and in high-profile shows. But for an industry that’s coasted on lazy depictions of Indigenous culture, old habits die hard.

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