The project has changed slightly since we began fundraising. Considering how expensive the materials are, I thought it might be best to focus solely on making the women’s co-op quilts into duvet and pillow covers. By working on only one type of product, we could concentrate more on quality. I also believe that one type of product might be easier to market. I hope you all agree – your feedback is most appreciated!
On Sunday, August 14th, I visited the women’s co-operative with Modibo Coulibaly, the Mali country director for SIT, a Vermont-based Study Abroad school that I attended in Spring 2010. Modibo has generously agreed to coordinate meetings with the women, translate from Bambara into French and vice-versa, and travel to Ségou as my partner!
The meeting went really well. We met with four co-ops members: Maimouna, the head of the organization, Kayatou, who is in charge of teaching Bogolan (mudcloth), Djeneba, who is in charge of teaching sewing and Abdoullaye, a tailor who makes clothes for the shop.
Modibo and I discussed the project in depth, including:
– What is a duvet cover
– What sizes we want
– What types of fabric we want (as they work with many different kinds)
– The quality we expect
– How the project would be financed: we’ll buy the products from them, sell them in the US and put the profits into a bank account. That extra money will be put aside for shipping costs so that the project can be sustainable once I leave.
The women were very enthusiastic. I shared a list of duvet and pillow measurements and explained how many samples of each product I wanted in the next month. When I asked, “Could they be ready by September 5th?” the women exclaimed, “We can finish them in August if you like!”
We decided I would give them some start-up money for fabric costs, which has already resulted in two complications that I have been trying to resolve:
– The fabric is much more expensive than I had expected. Making a King size duvet cover costs around $85 – so we could consider selling them at $115 in the US… but would people spend that much on these types of duvet covers?
– HSBC says that they can’t open an account for this project, so I’m going to see if I can open a local bank account (which might actually be a better idea anyway)
Thank you again to everyone who has so generously donated to this cause! I will continue to keep you updated on the project.
Your feedback is most welcome, as I am still learning!