The Collaboration Highlights Traditional Latin American Textiles Handmade by Woman Artisans in Guatemala
Stuart Weitzman has partnered with women’s empowerment and ethical fashion non-profit Mercado Global to create a limited-edition ikat print jacquard fabric for a selection of its Spring 2024 sandal silhouettes. The partnership is more than a design venture: the brand sees incorporating textiles made by indigenous artisanal communities in Latin America into luxury pieces as a powerful step towards a future where ethical production methods and elevated design seamlessly intertwine in the fashion industry.
As a leader in the ethical fashion movement for nearly two decades, Mercado Global empowers
indigenous women to transform their lives through entrepreneurship. Through their nonprofit programs, women become partner artisans and are provided with the training, materials, and tools necessary to produce fashion accessories for some of the biggest brands and retailers around the world.
The limited-edition ikat print jacquard fabric featured is created by indigenous women artisans in Guatemala. The process of creating the material starts with the artisans dyeing specific areas of the yarn with the resist-dyeing technique, in which specific sections of the yarn are tightly bound before dyeing to create a distinctive pattern. The yarn is then woven into fabric by the artisans using a loom.
“This partnership with Stuart Weitzman not only provides work opportunities to women artisans in Guatemala, but it also brings the cultural significance of traditional Latin American handmade textiles to the forefront. It celebrates and helps further preserve a centuries-old tradition, and we are thrilled to be able to bring this history of craftsmanship to Stuart Weitzman’s own storied history of craftsmanship in luxury footwear.”
– Ruth Alvarez-DeGolia, Mercado Global Founder & Executive Director
The styles are available to shop on the brand’s website, in select Stuart Weitzman boutiques around the globe, and in select Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom locations beginning April 3.
