Conversation with Vietnamese Designer Thao Vu of Kilomet 109, Part 1
Covid-19 innovations through preserving traditional crafts
Thao Vu.
As one of the major fashion players in the Southeast Asian market, Vietnam is known for its sizable and fast-growing clothing manufacturing industry. A recent study by leading market and consumer data provider, Statista, showed that there has been a steady year-on-year growth to the production volume of clothes in the country. The apparel market value, according to the research, is estimated to reach USD3.13 billion by 2022. This is partly due to the growing fashion scene in Vietnam that is dominated, on the one hand, by mass production brands, and on the other, by luxury shops, such as Chanel and Gucci. Then there are slow fashion brands like Kilomet 109 which is known for their working relationship with the ethnic minority communities in Vietnam to preserve the artisanal process of clothing production from start to end.
In this interview, we speak with founder and designer Thao Vu on working with ethnic minority communities in Vietnam, as well as sustaining a slow fashion label in the Covid-19 pandemic.
How has Covid-19 affected Kilomet 109?
It is definitely a challenging time for us. Our physical store in Hanoi has been struggling. There are no tourists, and many, many expatriates have also left Vietnam to go back to their home countries. There have been a lot of changes in Vietnam, in general.
And have these changes affected Kilomet 109 greatly?
The percentage of our international buyers has dropped exponentially by, I would say, 50%, in the physical store. Normally, we make more sales from the store itself than online. But I think it has also been a blessing for us.
Oh? In what ways? Could you elaborate further?
Many Vietnamese are not able to travel outside of Vietnam, so we have quite a number of domestic shoppers. Consumption is on the rise, and many of the nouveau riche find themselves unable to travel, like to Singapore for instance, so they are looking for other ways to spend their money. And it is funny because I did not consider them to be sustainable consumers of the brand initially. However, I think Covid-19 has changed all our perceptions. Many people are now becoming more conscious of the impact they have on the environment, and are more selective of what they are spending on. We are forced to rethink what is important to us, and are made more aware of environmental issues. Thankfully, Kilomet 109 falls in the right spot; we are a sustainable luxury label and that is what people are looking for during this challenging time. Covid-19 has helped all of us to realise that we need to support the local brands. It is no longer fashionable to follow trends and all of that, so while it has been challenging, I am very grateful for how the Vietnamese people have rallied behind us.
We are forced to rethink what is important to us, and are made more aware of environmental issues. Thankfully, Kilomet 109 falls in the right spot; we are a sustainable luxury label and that is what people are looking for during this challenging time.
I feel that this is also in line with the ethos of the brand, yes? Kilomet 109 is working towards preserving the traditional techniques of ethnic minority communities in Vietnam, and it feels like this is a full circle so to speak.
Indeed. When I first started my brand, that was my aim. Kilomet 109 was for the local market first, and then it slowly expanded towards an international audience. The story of the brand as well as our social values rank us quite high among the Vietnamese because we are pretty much the only one here doing what we do.
Working with ethnic minority groups in Vietnam. Image courtesy of Kilomet 109.
Kilomet 109 works with ethnic minority communities in Vietnam - could you tell us how big the team is?
Our work can be split into two steps. The first step is the work that we do with the artisans from within the communities themselves, and currently we are working with different artists that represent five different ethnic groups from Vietnam. In each of those communities, there is no fixed number of people working, and it tends to change. So, it could be anywhere from five to 10 depending on the community itself. I would say that at any one time, we have about 40, maybe 45 artisans who are working on projects with us. This includes the planting and harvesting of raw materials such as hemp or cotton, as well as a small scale production of the textiles. For instance, a group of Khmer artisans in the Mekong Delta is currently tending to the growing of ebony fruits, which are used to make our black dye. We are working with different groups on everything from planting of the seeds to the finishing of the actual textiles
Once the textiles are ready, we take them back to our studio in Hanoi, where we do all of the design, pattern cutting and the making of the clothes in the collection. Here, we are a team of five.
Ebony fruit dyeing. Image courtesy of Kilomet 109.
Ebony fruit dyeing. Image courtesy of Kilomet 109.
When you say that you collaborate with the artisans from these various ethnic minority communities from various parts of Vietnam, do they work on one specific land that is owned by Kilomet 109? Or how does it work actually?
Good question! These lands belong fully to the communities. To be perfectly honest, we do not have the financial resources to buy that type of land. But also, it is important for us that these groups maintain the ownership of their land, and the control of their land. We are not trying to dictate to them what they need to do, when they need to do it and how they should use their land. It is important that they use it in a way that makes the most economic sense for them.
I see…
Yes, because they have been growing, for example, hemp on this land even before we came into the picture. Our goal is to help them do that more efficiently, and by also covering some of the costs for them. There is also a guarantee of purchase - yes, we pay them for their work, and buy from them the finished product - and use of the textiles and dyes that they crafted. Everything is handmade from start to finish, and that is what makes our brand so unique. From the seed all the way to the final piece, Kilomet 109 has full visibility and transparency and we are engaged in every step along the way. There are no middlemen.
Pieces from the Miên Collection 2020. Image courtesy of Kilomet 109.
Could you tell us more about the process of creating new natural dyes?
Well, 50% of our work is learning and applying the traditional techniques which can be half a century old, and the other 50% is for experimenting. This part is about looking at the fibres and coming up with new raw materials that can be used to create these dyes.
Do you have an example that you can share?
In the Red River area, in Northern Vietnam, they used to use soil to dye the fabric into different hues like nude, or soft pink. So, I was already investigating this type of dye, and when I was in Cao Bang, we stumbled onto this super heavy rock that has a slight orange tinge to its colour, almost like rust. We experimented with yarn first and the colour was beautiful. When I spoke to the people in the community, they told me how their grandmothers used to make some sort of a pinkish dye but they were not able to recall the techniques. So that was lost. And when we found this rock by chance, we dyed the yarn first and then the fabric.We also experimented on the ikat fabric, and that was beautiful. This Ikat fabric was woven by the Khmer group in the Mekong Delta area, not in the North.
Rock dye and dyed cotton yarn. Image courtesy of Kilomet 109.
Dyed cotton fabric. Image courtesy of Kilomet 109.
How long was the process?
This was a quick process that took about three months. We found the area where the rocks and soil are in abundance, and experimented with different elements from the land, until we came to this rock, which produced the most solid and strongest shade
If this was quick, how long does it usually take?
It really depends. Certain dyes took us years and years. For instance, we had a collection that took four-and-a-half years to complete as we were working with indigo only. It depends on the resources we have around us.
Visit kilomet109.com for more information.
Click here for Part 2 of the conversation with Thao Vu, where she speaks about her process of creating new textiles and natural dyes, the importance of experimentation with artisan collaborators and what keeps Kilomet 109 going.