Part 2 - Visit to the block printing workshop and Cascade

September 11, 2023 - Today, I visited the block printing workshop Dharan in Bagru, just outside Jaipur.

Mother Dharan started together with her daughter and son - all three of them are designers and live in a beautiful HAVELI outside Jaipur. There are 50 members in the family, including uncles, sisters, cousins, etc. Father Dharan grows mangoes - it must be a large haveli!

Dhananja and Rachna are my contact persons, and they each have their own two rooms. The block printing workshop has 60 employees and prints 700-2000 meters per day.

In the sewing factory, there are 55 people, located in a different building. We discuss various qualities: organza, organdi, cotton/flex, voile, cambric...

For a custom special quality, one must order a minimum of 12.00 meters. Our orders account for 75% of their production (initially, we only did home textiles with Dharan). They also have a larger customer in Japan, as well as several small local ones. I understand that they now have multiple rooms where they do the printing.

Becoming certified requires a larger organization. I understand that these three individuals lead the company. Rachna handles new product development, Dhananja manages production, and Mother Dharan oversees color recipes and more. It's incredibly interesting to understand how both the company and the family are structured!

September 15, 2023 – What a heavy rain shower we had this Friday morning.

A very welcome rain shower after many hot days – 30-40 degrees Celsius every day. I'm having a leisurely breakfast with Shoukla, who owns the hotel and is the host.

Yesterday, I met with the Cascade team. Everyone in the office was dressed in new and old Gudrun garments. So colorful and fun. I recognized all the clothes, but couldn't pinpoint the exact year. Especially a checkered blouse made from a scarf fabric that would be perfect for my current collection ideas. We also discussed our shoes with soles and lasts. The last on our new fabric shoe is specially made for us; I didn't know that!