Both of Adriana’s organizations, animaná and Hecho por Nosotros, are at the forefront of a new fashion movement that will create a positive network involving all actors of the industry looking for products that are sustainably and ethically made. To that end, Adriana develops partnerships with local organizations along the Andes. She works with rural communities to develop the natural fibers and trains rural inhabitants in skills that help match their ancestral techniques with high fashion design demands.
Animaná is a B certified fashion company producing accessories, women’s clothes and home products. All products are made by Andean communities utilizing traditional techniques, using natural fibers from Patagonia and the Andes, as well as skills and tools passed down for generations in these communities. Through the company, Adriana unites actors along all parts of the production and supply chain, indigenous communities, small and medium local businesses, and designers and ensures the creation of ethical and sustainable products. Currently, animaná has one store in Paris, at St Germain, a showroom in Buenos Aires and online stores available in Europe, the United States, and Argentina.
Adriana knows that to change paradigm in industry, a joint effort is required to raise awareness. In 2008, Adriana founded the social organization, Hecho Por Nosotros, and since then has built a broad network of artisans, producers, professionals, and students dedicated to a sustainable fashion movement. Since it’s establishment, Hecho por Nosotros has worked in collaboration with numerous regional and international institutions and organizations; Ethical Fashion Forum in London, Universal Love Paris, Ethical Fashion Initiative (EFI) European Union, UN Industrial Development Organisation UNIDO, etc. Moreover, since 2016, Hecho por Nosotros has been addressing questions of sustainable fashion with United Nations Economic and Social Commission (ECOSOC) consultative status. Such work focuses on highlighting the possibilities of the fashion industry to advance Agenda 2030 of sustainable development goals, by organising events and panels, through oral and written statements, and making the problems of the industry known at the highest political level, building networks with all stakeholders interested in sustainable development of this industry.
Adriana also works with schools and universities to develop projects, university modules and webinars based on sustainable fashion principles for future fashion professionals and consumers. She also developed a research Center Quampulu which brings together different actors in the industry--academics, companies, designers, professionals, communicators, among others, to learn from each others; local artisans to develop their skills and business models with renowned international fashion professionals and mentors, and to develop and pass over ancestral artisanry techniques and cultures. The last month, Adriana accessed to a grant of the Buenos Aires Ministry of Culture to develop an Ethical Fashion School to be developed during 2017 and 2018.
In order to reinforce her work on the education side, Adriana’s son has stepped in to help manage Animaná. In doing this, Adriana is looking to focus on widening animaná’s reach. In the next 5 years, Adriana hopes to open 10-20 more stores, including one in Buenos Aires. In addition, she wants to sell to retailers in France, Switzerland, New York, and Nordic countries, as well as expand online to United States markets. Moreover, she hopes to employ a franchise system to expand retail locations quickly around the world. For Hecho por Nosotros, Adriana plans to present a comprehensive economic plan in the upcoming years to involve more actors in the fashion industry to join her ethical movement. Adriana sees a new future for the fashion industry, and through both her retail brand animaná, and the NGO Hecho por Nosotros, she is on her way to making sustainable and ethical fashion a reality.
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