Her name is Lis.
In Wakami we always say we are a team. We are all working together on every collection, developing new products. But it’s our Creative Director and team leader who is magical when it comes to developing concepts and new products. Sometimes it seems like her ideas come in a split second! She knows almost every traditional weaving technique there is and what materials they can be paired with. She is not just the Creative Director but really a team player and a multi-tasking mastermind. She develops concepts, designs and weaves new products, creates the Wakami stores – and she tells the funniest stories.
How did Lis get to be so wonderful?
She started with us fourteen years ago, when Wakami was still just an idea, and her input helped to shape our values and styles – so they run in her blood. Lis is essential for the brand as Wakami is a very important piece of her life.
It’s funny. Back then, Lis had dreamed of designing electronic products that could reach the world. Now look at today. Little did she know that her designs would be sold all around the world, but these products would be completely different to what she had imagined.
When Lis started at Wakami she had the task to develop products, any product, to reach the market and create opportunities for women in different communities in Guatemala, all with different skill sets.
It was then that she started doing research on the best-selling products in the market, products that could be made fast, and in large quantities, to open multiple opportunities for women in Guatemala.
Lis went on a tour to different communities in Guatemala and then to a trade show in New York. It was then that she realized that accessories could be that product that would open multiple doors. She recognized that bracelets had a high demand in the market, and they were easy to make, carry and transport. At the same time they could be created using different techniques and skill sets, and made by women with different backgrounds and abilities. They could even be made, as I mentioned in my previous post, with the macramé technique, for all the communities that didn’t have a strong cultural heritage with traditional techniques.
Lis, along with the team, set the basis to build the Wakami we dreamed of, the Wakami that you now know today.
As you look down at your wrist, adorned with one (or many?) Wakami bracelets, you have Lis to thank for their beauty and style. We are so fortunate to have her on our team, designing for you and empowering the women around her.
