The story of our founders
Our journey started in 2000 in the cotton fields of Oro Blanco, Peru. When one of our founders (Solidaridad, a Dutch NGO) visited the local cotton fields, they were shocked by the impact of the regular cotton industry on local farmers and the environment. There was a small group of organic cotton farmers, but at the time, not enough parties were interested in buying fair and organic fabrics, and no customers seemed to care. Nobody in the chain cared - neither the supplier, the retailer and the end consumer - and therefore, it was too expensive. Without demand from the market, there was no need for farmers to change.
But we wanted to change that! The founders of Kuyichi decided to take matters into their own hands and started fair-trade and organic collaborations with local cotton farmers, rewarding them and everyone involved in the supply chain for their hard work. To give the farmers their fair share, a good life and bring back healthy soil.
First for organic
The best way to create a fair and organic cotton market was to start a brand. Kuyichi was born. Our mission: change the fashion industry from within, inspire others to start using this cotton and give people the opportunity to choose a more sustainable - and still stylish - alternative. The most commonly worn product made of cotton is a pair of jeans, especially in our home country, The Netherlands. The denim industry is also one of the most polluting in the entire fashion industry. That's why we started making 100% organic denim as the first brand ever.
Our part of the story
It’s a name we can still identify with 20 years later. It’s what we’re here for in the fashion industry: to create a system that is good for everyone. The people making our products, the planet, the people wearing our pure goods and the people working at our brand. To use clothing as a force for good.
A lot has changed over the years. Our production moved closer to our home base. We now mainly produce in Turkey, where we set up a complete supply chain from cotton farm, yarn, fabric, and trims to the final production. We have a strict ‘certified organic cotton only’-policy. We're happy to see that fair and organic fashion has gained much more attention over the past years, both in media and legislation. The system is changing slowly but surely. The world will always need more colour, justice and positivity; therefore, Kuyichi (phonetically pronounced as koo-ee-chee) will always be a name that we're proud of.