Our Story

Origin Colombia offers a wide variety of stunning crochet bags, handcrafted by indigenous women artisans from the Wayuu tribe in Colombia.

Our mission is to coalesce ethics with aesthetics and provide our customers with bags that are intricately crocheted, with the strings of culture and  ancient tradition.

Each bag that we sell is a result of 8-15 days of dedicated work by a single woman of the tribe. We aim to get the Wayuu people the recognition and the compensation they deserve by sharing their rich cultural heritage with the rest of the world.

Our multi-purpose crossbody bags are one of a kind and promote sustainability at its best. They also bestow our customers with power, the power to make a difference in the lives of the Wayuu tribe.

Fair Trade

The women who craft our bags are part of the indigenous Wayuu group in La Guajira, the northernmost part of Colombia. They live in poverty, and it’s important to us that our collections are produced through fair trade practices that give dignity and support the livelihood of the Wayuu women.

This means that our Wayuu artisans are paid justly, craft our products within a safe and healthy working environment, and uphold working standards that make us proud to be their partners.

Sustainability

Working together with other organizations to transform the communities of La Guajira, Colombia, into sustainable handicraft production centers, Origin Colombia hopes to play a part in the transformation of Wayuu women into true entrepreneurs who recognize the value of their work. Ultimately, the goal is to help the Wayuu community to fight poverty throughout a sustainable business.

 About Me

 

Claudia, owner of Origin Colombia Wayuu Bags

 

Hi, I'm Claudia! I am proud to be Colombian, and am not even ashamed of my Latino accent. I love my traditions and culture, and I feel honoured to represent my homeland wherever I go.

My admiration for our indigenous artisans knows no bounds. What they can create with just their bare hands is simply remarkable. Full respect.

My work with the artisans of Colombia and the indigenous communities started when I was living in the Philippines for twenty years, I wanted to do something to change the image of Colombia around the world and also, to do something to help the indigenous Wayuu community of la Guajira, Colombia to fight incredible poverty and hunger. I believe I was the pioneer to introduce Wayuu bags in Asia, going into several countries in the region. 

Today, destiny has brought me on a new journey to Canada  where I still continue to support the community, and that pushed me to create Origin Colombia, which is an online store at your service.

Today, Origin Colombia continues working with the Wayuu women, always employing fair trade practices and sustainability.

My main concern is to make sure our lady artisans live with their families in clean conditions, well cared for, with their children not suffering from hunger, and with access to clean water. Also, the artisans must be in a safe, wholesome work environment.

I love what I do and I feel highly motivated to continue this project of many years.  It is my life's work.