S03 Episode 117 | INDUSTRY OF ALL NATIONS + THE IDENTITY OF PRODUCTS
In episode 117, Kestrel welcomes Juan Diego Gerscovich, the cofounder of Industry of All Nations, to the show. A design and development office that was founded in 2010, IOAN has a commitment to rethink methods of production for consumer goods.
"Every maker that we work with, we want to give them the chance, to let them express - via the product - their life."
-Juan Diego Gerscovich, cofounder of IOAN
INDUSTRY OF ALL NATIONS
In this episode, Juan shares insight into his early years, growing up in Argentina with parents in the fashion industry. He also talks about how from a young age, he had a powerful interest in the origin of things, and a curiosity connected to where things come from.
While Juan originally studies architecture, he eventually realized that garments and consumer goods allowed him to create things that were more accessible to people, and that allowed him to develop a more intimate connection.
Kestrel and Juan further explore this idea that products have their own identity - sparked by the below quote from IOAN's website:
“Products have their own identity, which come from their history. An alpaca sweater hand knit in Bolivia, a pair of alpargatas from Argentina or a checkered lined rain-coat made in England. Each of these represent specific moments in time, places, feelings, and we buy and wear them based on how they resonate with us. If you separate a thing from its origin, you separate it from its meaning and reduce it to a mere scrap of cotton and plastic. You orphan it.”
Also, Juan shares more about how Industry Of All Nations was born to bring production back to the original makers.
The below thoughts, ideas + organizations were brought up in this chat:
IOAN's Alpaca Project
New Denim Project, IOAN is working on a new project with them - listen to our Conscious Chatter episode with New Denim Project here >
INNOVATIVE BRAND | Self-Assembly
I (Kestrel) just returned from spending the last week in Arnhem, Netherlands for the State of Fashion event. I discovered so many incredible projects, and I'll be sharing more about it in an upcoming episode.
But in the meantime, I wanted to share a super cool brand I learned about at the event. Self-Assembly is Finland-based, and the project of Matti Liimatainen. Self-Assembly makes ready-to-assemble garment construction kits, and basically takes humans out of the supply chain.
All S-A products are made with a special seam that allows them to be assembled by hand, without any tools or machinery. The products are delivered as loose, flat packed components, which need be joined together, before they are ready to be worn.
Learn more about Self-Assembly here>
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