Partnership for Change has for several years had a close collaboration with Paradise Fashion through the weaving mill in Gullele.
Paradise Fashion has now changed its name to Genet, and at the same time also launched a new website:
Genet combines old traditions with modern design and the products are sold to several countries in Europe and in the USA. PfC has previously contributed to the upscaling of a weaving mill in Gullele in Addis Ababa. Many of the women used to earn their living by gathering firewood and carrying it back to the village. These women have gone from carrying 80 kg of firewood on their backs and with minimal wages, to becoming proud, decently paid weavers. The women have been trained in various materials, weaving techniques and designs which they now use in the production of Genet. A large part of the textiles used in Genet’s collections are produced at the weaving mill. In connection with a fashion show that Genet will hold in mid-October, though, all the material is produced by the women at the weaving mill in Gullele.
“Without women, I don’t think my company would have existed,” says Genet Kebebe. Genet established Paradise Fashion in 1992. Her motivation was her love for Ethiopian, handwoven products, which have long traditions in the country.
On the new website you can, among other things, read about founder Genet Kebede’s vision for the company and see her latest collections. Under «sustainability» you can read about Genet’s collaboration with PfC.
Under “community” you can read the stories of Selam and Mekiya, and how the job at Genet has changed their lives.
Watch the video to hear Genet’s story.
