A few years back I did my BBA in Fashion Marketing & Management and worked in the fashion industry in New York. To balance the hectic lifestyle, I started practicing pilates and yoga. My co-workers and I were moving around the city with our handbags, computer bags, gym bags, and sometimes even our lunch bags on our shoulders. I had a large handbag and managed to get most of what I needed for a day into this bag, but the yoga mat was a different story, and I didn’t really like the feeling of carrying around my workout clothes next to my computer. Right there and then I had this product idea that would solve at least three of these things.
When I moved back to Sweden and launched my company, I started in a different direction, but the product idea kept popping up and the intention of the company changed. Not as much as you would think though. The vision has always been to build a sustainable and holistic lifestyle company, but this time I followed my heart and decided to create products under the brand name Fajers. The first product, that product idea I had back in New York, was our fragrance infused Be Boundless Gym Clutch.
The clutch that solved at least three things: you don’t have to carry a bunch of bags with you, you can fit a folded yoga mat and your workout clothes in the clutch, and it’s been infused with a mix of essential oils to help you find focus before a meeting or workout. You can even mix it up and use it as an evening clutch.
The name Fajers comes from my grandmother. It was her maiden name and is pronounced fires. She’s had a major impact on my life. Being a strong and driven woman, having a company with my grandfather, and always making time for her family. To me Fajers represents the fire she had inside of her as well as the fire we all have inside of us.
Why sustainability and holistic is such a big part of the brand?
For me sustainability started with the fabric of the bag. My main goal was to find an innovative material and during my search I got deeper and deeper into what goes into the process from fiber to finished product. The people behind it and the impact every step have on the environment. I moved deeper and deeper into the black hole of sustainability. Yes, sometimes it feels like a black hole. There is so much to learn so you need to find your area of interest and focus on it.
The holistic part of the company is strongly connected to my life story and the fact that I have struggled with my own health since my teens. I have learned that I need to have a holistic approach to my health and lifestyle. I carry this belief system into the company I am building. I want to see the parts as a whole and know that Fajers customers can pick the tools they need to create their holistic lifestyle.
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The process of developing your first product
Okay, so I had that idea back in New York and couldn’t let it go. I knew that I wanted to work with innovative and sustainable materials, and it took me about one year to find the right one, a natural rubber called Yulex. Then it took another year to find a manufacturer that could work with this material.
The idea grew into a small collection, a brand, and a company on a mission to always produce high quality products with a deeper reason or why and a story to back it up.
With curiosity for the technology of the future and a love for the mystical universe, Fajers is the result of an idea to combine the two and create a holistic lifestyle in a hectic world. Bringing you multifunctional and sustainable products to simplify your everyday life in a fashionable manner.
Why building a socially and environmentally sustainable company
I believe that sustainability is more than the work we do to decrease the negative impact we have on the environment. It is about coming together, educate each other, and help each other create sustainable lifestyles. Fajers work with materials and partners that believe in high-quality products and production. I believe that products and supply chains created with the attention to details will result in responsible consumption. As a startup it’s hard and expensive to get all the pieces into place right away, but Fajers aim to be transparent and authentic in our communication. I strongly believe this will give our customers the information they need to make informed and conscious purchases.
Every detail is well thought through and important to Fajers. From the choice of fiber to the afterlife of a product. The first collections main material is Yulex, the world’s first high performing, non-sensitizing, 100% plant-based, and sustainably sourced pure natural rubber. This collection was created in black with a touch of green, but future colors will be influenced by the four elements: fire, earth, water, and air. Our patterns pay homage to nature with a subtle python pattern on the yoga mat and the pattern we call “The Fajers Pattern.” I created this pattern when I was playing around with different geometry shapes and their meaning. The hexagon symbolizes balance and harmony, and a triangle is said to symbolize the fire of consciousness. Fajers aim to bring nature into the big city life by connecting the elements, patterns, and fragrance with multifunctional design.
Right now, Fajers is working on putting everything into place. Create a high quality and trustworthy supply chain. When Fajers grow, one goal will be to expand the supply chain to the afterlife of our products. Providing options for our customers to give their products a new life. Another goal is to partner with organizations promoting both social and environmental sustainability.
The rest of this editorial will be published at a later date