Push Pull is a social enterprise that employs Cambodian artisans to create hand-weaved textiles for their handbags and home décor. Instead of using silk for the Ikat, the products are created using cotton in order to fulfill customer expectations in terms of practicality and fashion.
As a young business, Push Pull Cambodia’s first marketable product was a sarong for the 2010 Wanderlust for Madewell collection. The company has since come a long way and will be showing their debut collection, which contains wallets, totes, handbags and decorative pillows, at the New York International Gift Fair.
While there seem to be more and more artisan-made fashion accessories sourced from the Majority World on the market these days, many of them haven’t struck a balance -- in terms of design – between, as Push Pull Cambodia puts it in a press release, "East and West." With that being said, Push Pull's textiles are vibrant and modern: a simple comparison would be to tie-dye, but the Autumn 2011 collection is smarter and more intricate than that. The shapes of the bags themselves are standard, but it’s really the Ikat and the coloring that make the bags take on a life of their own.
More important than the style of the products, however, is Push Pull Cambodia’s commitment to using business as a method of fighting poverty.
Contact Information:
Push Pull Website
Telephone: 206-923-9227
Hand-Dyed Ikat Handbags
Push Pull Cambodia is a Social Enterprise with a Sense of Style
Trend Themes
1. Artisan-made Fashion Accessories - An opportunity to innovate in the artisan-made fashion accessories space, by sourcing from Majority World and crafting intricate and modern designs.
2. Sustainable Social Enterprises - A sustainability opportunity to explore the efficacy of expanding social-enterprise models for poverty-alleviation.
3. Cotton Ikat Textiles - An opportunity to innovate in textile-production by using cotton instead of silk, to create sturdier and trendier designs.
Industry Implications
1. Fashion & Apparel - An opportunity for fashion and apparel businesses to explore socially responsible values and artisan collaborations.
2. Home Decor - An opportunity for home decor companies to innovate by sourcing eco-friendly textiles and handwoven designs.
3. Social Entrepreneurship - An opportunity for impact-driven startups to invest in models that work positively towards fighting poverty and empowering local communities.