About Us
iWahine Collection was started by Awhimai Reynolds, founder and CEO of iWahine NZ, a boutique leadership and management consulting and coaching company for women since 2015.
As a busy businesswoman and entrepreneur, Awhimai looked for products that supported and reflected her lifestyle and who she was as a Māori woman. She wanted products that were ethically produced, where people involved in the manufacturing process, and the planet were cared for.
With that in mind, iWahine has carefully selected an ethical company with humble beginnings in Aotearoa New Zealand that has strong social and environmental values to produce high quality handcrafted luxury bags. Our supplier uses age-old artisanship techniques working with small groups of talented craftsmen whānau to meticulously handcraft each piece. These are not mass-produced off-the-factory-line handbags. Each bag is hand signed by the person that made it and each purchase plants 5 mangrove trees. We value ethical production with naturally derived sustainable materials that don’t compromise your values.
Māori-designed
Our bags are designed in Aotearoa (by Awhimai and her daughter Hayley) and made by craftsmen whānau in Indonesia.
Materials
Every bag produced by our supplier has been carefully crafted from only the very best natural, sustainably sourced materials. The leather is full grain end-of roll leather taken from other factories and repurposed by hand cutting around small defects. The full grain leather is taken from the top layer of the hide, chosen because it retains the grain and natural markings of the hide. It’s also the best leather you can get - which is why each of our bags is truly unique! Our canvas bags are made from 100% organic cotton, and dyed using azo-free dyes. This is why they feel so soft!
Only premium full grain and top grain by-product leather is used and organic cotton canvas is sustainably sourced, then carefully hand selected for each bag and accessory by their master craftsman.
The Environment
Giving back to papatūānuku is central to who we are. Your purchase will contribute to the restoration and protection of the fragile ecosystems of the islands that make up Indonesia. It's important that the craftsmen's home and livelihoods are protected, and sadly Indonesia is an area that gets hit with frequent tsunamis and floods. Planting mangrove forests that are native to these islands is a great way to reduce soil erosion and protect many of the endangered fish species that are so heavily over fished. Each purchase plants 5 mangrove trees, that restore much needed biodiversity and wildlife populations, provides paid work to local communities in their planting and maintenance, and helps to draw in CO2.
Certification
Our partner is a certified B Corporation, which means they meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. They’re also certified Climate Positive, as they offset their emissions by 120%. We are pleased to be associated with an ethical and socially responsible company using fashion as a force for good. So can you.
