QUE ONDA VOS is a fairtrade design label that produces scarves,, carpets and blankets which are all handmade by Indigenous Mayan weavers in Guatemala.
Hanne De Wyngaert graduated in fashion design at the Royal Academy Of Fine Arts in Antwerp in 2006. She was a co-founder and co-designer of the Belgian Designers Label ‘Ti+Hann’ from 2007 til 2012. Following this, Hanne started thinking about designing and developing products that have a social impact on the community that produces them.
In 2013 she travelled to Guatemala and founded the design label QUE ONDA VOS in cooperation with a local fair trade organization. This organization offers support to Mayan women in the Guatemalan countryside by making weaving, a traditional part of their daily lives, a solid source of income. The majority of these women live in extreme poverty, but with this collaboration the weavers receive a fair wage for their work. They also preserve and promote an ancient tradition that is threatened to disappear due to mass production. Since then Hanne has started collaborations with various organizations and cooperatives located in Guatemala, all known for their own handicraft specialties and techniques.
QUE ONDA VOS is Guatemalan street slang for ‘Yo, what’s up?’. The label Q.O.V stands for a combination of Mayan tradition and Western culture in the form of design and fair trade. QUE ONDA VOS develops products such as scarfs, bags, carpets and blankets, all 100% handmade by the Mayan weavers in Guatemala. The design of the products is a result of the dialogue, co-operation and interaction between the two cultures.
The project’s goal is to develop an awareness about conscious consumption and to create jobs in indigenous communities ensuring fair wages.
QUE ONDA VOS is about respect.
