CREATIVITY,

THAT CONNECTS

Our team

international and intercultural

Together we can do more! We are a diverse team from different backgrounds. Being able to learn and laugh with and about each other is one of our greatest qualities. Our design team currently consists of six Zambian tailors and two trainees from Waya and neighboring districts. Most of them have been trained in our tailoring workshop from the beginning and are learning every day. They all have their own touching stories, often characterized by great personal challenges. This label tells their stories and the beauty and dignity with which they shape their everyday lives. Pia Hintz has been running the Empowerment Design Studio full-time on site since 2020. As a fashion designer, she sees herself as a conceptual curator and is committed to empowering the women in the studio not only in terms of craftsmanship, but also personally. Our team is also supported by a number of international volunteers who support the production processes each year.

OUR HEART

It's time to end the systematic marginalization of the global South in art and design. That's why we encourage creative collaborations to tell the stories of these special people through Zambian craftsmanship.

At Life Trust Empowerment, we are committed to the holistic empowerment of underprivileged people from the compounds of Zambia. We do this through hands-on training, opening access to international markets for their products and creating a community within our empowerment project. Our aim is to empower women and enable them to be seen not just as recipients of aid, but as valuable and driving forces within their community and beyond.

Donate to this cause

OUR VALUES

Our approach emphasizes collaboration, transparency and community-led decision making. We are proud that our studio will soon be self-sufficient and no longer reliant on donations, and we are committed to ethical practices based on Christian values.

BEYOND FAIR WORKING CONDITIONS

The Empowerment Design Studio is more than just a workplace; it is a collective where women can experience healing and growth through creative expression. At Life Trust Empowerment, we offer formal employment with fair wages, clear employment contracts, opportunities for training, social security and health insurance – a rare opportunity in a region where there are few formal employment opportunities, especially for women.

Creating meaning together

For customers and creatives

We are redefining what success means for a socially sustainable fashion label by not focusing solely on maximizing profits, but developing a platform that enriches both customers and artisans through meaningful products that are designed to provoke thought. Therefore, Empowerment Design Studio’s mission is to present textile accessories and fashion collections with a profound meaning to a global audience.

Sustainable for people and nature

How we fulfill our responsibility within the possibilities of our Zambian context.

Minimal Waste

We are committed to producing as little waste as possible. All fabric remnants from cutting are used in creative projects, for example to make carpets for our Life Trust School Waya.

Local leather

Our leather comes from Zambia and is sustainably reused as a by-product of the food industry, reducing waste and conserving resources. With its natural texture and exceptional durability, it outperforms artificial leather, which is often made from raw materials that are harmful to the environment. By using this material, we also support the local economy.

Solar power

Our tailoring shop in Waya compound has been running on 100% solar power, generated by our own photovoltaic system from the very beginning. This enables us to work sustainably in the long term and do our bit for the environment

Fair wages

Our Zambian partner organization, Life Trust, pays wages that are above the local minimum wage level. All employees at the Empowerment Design Studio also have health insurance and are part of the state pension plan.

EMBEDDED IN LIFE TRUST ZAMBIA

Empowerment Design Studio is closely linked at a local level with the Zambian NGO Life Trust, which for over 25 years has focused on supporting some of the most vulnerable children, youths and families in Zambia.

to Life Trust

LONG-TERM INVESTMENT

Tailoring has been a central part of our mission to empower people in Kabwe for over a decade. The Empowerment Design Studio now offers women in Waya the opportunity to learn, work and grow as tailors, leaders and entrepreneurs while sustainably providing for their families.

DESIGN TRANSFORMED

Waya compound, previously known mostly for extreme heavy metal pollution and lead poisoning as a result of historical mining activity, is now gaining recognition for creativity and excellence in arts and crafts. This change in the perception of Waya is a testament to the resilience of the neighborhood community and the transformative power of design.