The Creative factory shop is a project to switch from consumption to creation. It is based on an experiment carried out in Roubaix, in the North of France, a region with a rich textile history. The shop will be a cooperative where members can create instead of just buying. With help from textile workers and craftspeople, they will learn to design and make unique clothes and accessories, using locally sourced up-cycled material that would otherwise go to waste.
National
France
ROUBAIX, HAUTS-DE-FRANCE - PARIS, ÎLE-DE-FRANCE
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
As a representative of an organisation
Name of the organisation(s): ABOUT A WORKER Type of organisation: For-profit company First name of representative: Kim Last name of representative: Hou Age: 29 Please attach a copy of your national ID/residence card:
By ticking this box, I certify that the information regarding my age is factually correct. : Yes Gender: Female Nationality: France Function: Founder + Creative Director Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: 1 Sente Giraud Town: Les Lilas Postal code: 93260 Country: France Direct Tel:+33 7 71 94 97 78 E-mail:kimhou01@gmail.com Website:https://www.aboutaworker.com/
URL:https://www.facebook.com/aboutaworker Social media handle and associated hashtag(s): @aboutaworker #aboutaworker #spreadworkersvoice @kimhou #kimhou
THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP is a workshop platform situated in a busy shopping district of Paris. It is not a regular shop and does not distribute clothes and accessories but the experience of being a worker, a designer or a craftsmen in remote production areas of France. It invites visitors to create their own personalized product by hands, with upcycled local materials, while learning skills and textile stories from national professional makers and facilitators. At a time when mass consumption is being denounced, it is the moment to invent new ways of working and distributing. THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP is an answer to reduce and re-use industrial waste while building bridges between the many actors of the fashion industry. Last November, we have imagined a prototype in Roubaix, France, during our research exhibition “MADE BY LOCALS (?)” supported by the French Ministry of Culture. We collaborated with textile and fashion enterprises, scholar programs and hundreds of fashion amateurs from the region. During the exhibition, the public could work inside a clothing production chain. The clothes conceived collectively with fabric dead stocks from local manufacturers, would then be sold in the shop next to the assembly line. To get discounts, visitors were invited to work for the platform. The participants were excited to learn new skills while discovering the many stories behind each fabric. The experience was perceived as therapeutic and empowering. However, most visitors were disappointed not to bring home their self-made product. As the idea of manufacturing impersonal clothes is getting less popular today, we will focus on the experience of creating a personal item for each participant at the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP. Our workshop program will not be free, but this new place will function as a cooperative. Participants will obtain discounts if they work monthly for the platform. We hope to inspire the fashion world to become more inclusive through this new alternative.
transmission
upcycling
accessibility
fashion cooperative
workshop
1) Replacing "mass consumption" by "mass creation" : We give consumers the tools to create their personal product, instead of buying manufactured ones. This solution is a way to reduce mass production, save energy and inspire people to consume, create and keep clothes they truly loved with a story behind them.
2) Re-using waste to create and educate : THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP can only function with material dead stocks and waste from local suppliers and locals. Through our workshops' curation and the exchange with a workshop facilitator / worker or craftsman, the visitors will create a specific product related to a specific material, while learning about the history and innovation of its manufacturer.
3) Valuing the local crafts in a globalized world :To reduce carbon footprint and transport cost, the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP is meant to be situated nearby regional production houses. At the moment, we are planning to build THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP in Paris, the fashion capital, an hour away from les Hauts-de-France and Normandy region, renown for its textile production heritages. THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP workshop platform can be reproducible in other countries, but only with the use of local materials and local crafts. In the future, the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP will have an online network where visitors from worldwide will be able to discover what’s happening inside the many CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP from around the globe while learning about specific crafts from specific countries / regions / communities.
1) A Space to create well-made personalized products : In the fashion world, personalized items, such as monogrammed bag, are usually dedicated to the luxury sphere. THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP gives everybody the chance to create their personal products by upcycling unused materials from local fabric and production partners while learning skills from professionals.
2)A self-development moment : By learning new skills and building beautiful personalized items, the participants will gain confidence and will be inspired to be more creative in their daily lives.
3) A curated experience : Each month, the workshops program and the immersive scenography will change according to a specific theme. The participant will be able to choose a workshop from a workshop menu. As THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP will be situated in Paris, the fashion capital, we would like to value the crafts and industrial roots from one French region each month for the first year, starting by the Hauts-de-France, renown for its industrial past and renewal.
4) A platform to network with professionals : By exchanging with fashion amateurs, craftsman, workers and facilitators the participants will be able to meet, learn from each other and maybe develop new ideas together. THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP is a great place to socialize with the fashion world, while brainstorming on its future.
5) A valuable platform for textile, fashion workers and enterprises: THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP gives visibility to workers and craftsmen behind an enterprise. It empowers their work and importance in the fashion world and raise awareness on the strength and weaknesses of their industry. By exposing their opinion to the participants, the discussion might help to find out solutions for their professional future.
1) Moving from a capitalist model to a cooperative one : Our workshop program will not be free, but accessible to everybody. As the materials are given by local suppliers, the fees will only include the facilitators payment and the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP’s functioning. However, participants will be able to have discounts if they work at the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP monthly (minimum 1 hour / month). They will be asked to help within the communication, visual merchandising, sales, material inventory and/or workshop development/production fields. Being part of the cooperative will be a way to meet and learn skills from many people while connecting with locals and professionals.
2) Valuing the workers and craftsmen behind the fashion industry : The workshops are hosted by representatives ( worker / artisan / designer ) of textile/garment production companies or facilitators who have encountered the crafts behind a company. If that’s the case, the facilitator becomes the messenger of the worker/craftsmen, he will tell the story behind his/her workplace and teach his/her manual skill.
3) Meeting the fashion actors by being part of “a creation chain” : Our workshops are always organized in groups, in immersive settings, giving the possibility for its visitors to experience the backstage scenes behind the glossy fashion world and discuss it. The CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP gives to its participants the possibility to meet other fashion amateurs or professionals, in an inspiring and artistic atmosphere.
4) Creating a beautiful product easily : Our workshops are conceived for different age ranges and production levels. When we develop a workshop, we make sure it is easy to follow for everybody. The outcome should value the materials of its supplier and the acquired skill of the participants.
Last November, we have created a prototype of THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP in Roubaix during our research exhibition “MADE BY LOCALS (?)” at Les Archives Nationales du Mondes du Travail supported by the French Ministry of Culture and Mondes Nouveaux grants program. By collaborating with 15 textile and fashion enterprises, 2 scholar programs and hundreds of fashion amateurs from the region, we have developed a consumption alternative which would be economically, culturally, sustainably beneficial to the locals. For the opening of the exhibition during Black Friday, we asked the public to work inside a clothing production chain. It was an opportunity for them to learn different skills with textile students from ESAAT, members from ANTI_FASHION and local production workers. The clothes, designed and produced collectively with fabric dead stocks from local manufacturers, would then be sold in the shop next to the assembly line. To get reduction on products, visitors were invited to work at least 25 minutes in the shop or in the assembly line. The more they would work, the more percentage they would get. During the opening event, more than 200 locals joined the assembly line. The crowd was excited to learn new skills and discover the many industrial stories behind each fabric. After the event, many participants confirmed that it was not only a creative experience but a therapeutic one which would heal their self-doubts and their spending habits. At a time when digitalization is at its peak, proceeding and communicating daily without a screen is harder than ever before. It is becoming fundamental to reimagine physical experiences, where people can find reasons to meet by using their hands and their artistic taste. However, most visitors were disappointed not to bring home their own product. It seems that the idea of producing impersonal clothes is getting less popular today. Which is the reason why we will focus on creating personalized items for THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP.
FRENCH MINISTRY OF CULTURE ( Mondes Nouveaux prize) (national) : We were able to create the prototype version of the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP that we have called “ MADE BY LOCALS (?)” as we won Mondes Nouveaux prize, a grant which is giving us the opportunity to search and imagine a new production system in the fashion world. The CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP will be financed partly by Mondes Nouveaux, however we still need some extra funding to bring the concept to live. The French Ministry of Culture will also help us, in the month to come, to find a semi-permanent place for the project to exist during the year 2023/2024.
FABRIC MANUFACTURERS AND FASHION BUSINESSES (regional) : We Gathered hundreds of unused fabric rolls and boxes of dead stocks from 15 different fashion enterprises : going from local garment and textile manufacturers to local fashion brands and shops. Some workers from different companies also helped to organize the workshop during the opening. We were also able to visit their workplace and interview their employees to understand their vision of a local industry. Most of them, especially in remote areas, told us they were thriving for more visibility outside their territory. For the first theme of the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP in Paris , we will value the Hauts-de-France region and the partners we have collaborated with. We will organize a specific workshop with each partner, valuing their product, history and practice.
SCHOLAR PROGRAMS (local): We collaborated with 3 distinct fashion and textile educational programs from Roubaix. The students helped us to develop an inclusive and sustainable production alternative. They also facilitated the workshop during the whole exhibition period. For the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP in Paris, we will surround ourselves with local students.
VISITORS ( European (mainly local)) : More than 300 people came during the exhibition period. We hope to reach more participants in one of Paris busiest shopping districts this year.
Learning how to create clothes / accessories :
Participants will learn how to create their own product from A to Z by taking part in workshops chaperoned by local Craftsmen/ Workers and/or facilitors.
Learning about the fashion industry and local crafts :
By working in an immersive environment and exchanging with the workshop hosts, the participant will discover the craft history and innovation behind a specific local industrial actor.
Learning to design while upcycling :
Participants will be constraint to design with what’s available : material dead stocks coming from local / regional textile or clothing enterprise.
Learning to work in the fashion industry :
By spending time at THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP participants will learn methods of design and production which they can use later on in their career. THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP is also a networking platform which makes it easier for professionals to meet.
THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP is not a regular shop. Instead of distributing manufactured clothes and accessories to potential consumers, this cooperative gives its participants the opportunity to make their own unique products with local uocycled fabrics while being helped by facilitators (worker, craftsman, designer or enterprise representative) . THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP offers immersive experiences to discover the many faces of the fashion industry through craft and design.
THE CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP platform can be reproducible in other countries, but only with the use of local materials and local crafts. After implementing our concept in Paris and taking the time to test the idea in a bigger scale than for our first prototype. We hope to develop more CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP in big cities worldwide, for fashion amateurs to educate themselves on local crafts from their visited territory. In the future, the CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP will have an online network where visitors from worldwide will be able to discover what’s happening inside the many CREATIVE FACTORY SHOPS from around the globe, while learning about specific crafts from specific countries / regions / communities. The CREATIVE FACTORY SHOP online network will then function as a local crafts encyclopedia.
At a time when mass production methods are being denounced, the worker's conditions are being questioned and the hierarchical system is starting to shake, it is time to imagine a sustainable alternative which will give production companies, makers and consumers the ability to grow spiritually and create products in a more thoughtful manner than our humanity did in the past.
