Mayu » Peru

STORIES OF AN ALPACA SCARF-HOODIE

Kati — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 03:43:55 +0000

Mayu was recently featured on an affiliate marketing site. The owner asked me for the story behind our best selling alpaca scarf. In this case, I choose one of our all time best sellers, the melange hoodie. Here is what I wrote (and yes, this is me in my hoodie to the left, most likely day dreaming about Peru…):

“Kate here, founder of Mayu. This Fair Trade certified, hand-knit alpaca hoodie is my favorite Mayu product. Let me tell you why…

During my last trip to Peru, I was busy working with Mayu’s artisans to create our new collection. I have a day job so everything I’d done with the group of knitters up until that point had been through the mail. Yup, snail mail. I sent samples to the rural Andean community where they lived and held my breath that they’d arrive. After a 10 hour bus ride from Lima up into the mountains, the designs arrived and the artisans were off to replicate them. When I arrived in Peru to my old Peace Corps stomping grounds, the artisans and I danced the night away to Peruvian Huayno music and got to work bright and early the following morning.

As I was reviewing the scarves, hats and gloves they’d knit for me, I knew we had problems. Some of the products just didn’t turn out as planed. I knew it was time to improvise. We had seven days so we had to do it quick! I explained my designers’ vision of this mélange hoodie and Diana, one of the most skilled knitters, went to work. The first model was a disaster; a horrible stitch, a tiny hood and measures were off. The second model was better, but it was knit too tight, the hood was too pointy and the scarf was too short. The third time, well that was a charm.

We hope you enjoy this hoodie. It is a must-have winter staple. So versatile, so soft, so cute. Your friends will want one too.”

Meet Diana here, the artisan behind this super stylish hoodie.

INVEST IN PERU!

Kati — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 12:18:46 +0000

Recently, the New York Stock Exchange held a special event that Mayu feels is very important! Investors from the United States, Canada, Brazil, Spain, Argentina and Hong Kong packed the Wall Street headquarters for “Peru Day”. Around 200 people attended from all parts of the world to learn more about the newest business opportunities in the country, which is expected to follow the success of Brazil and Chile, becoming one of the business centers in Latin America. Peru has come a long way since the roots of Mayu were founded back in 2003-2005 when I was in the Peace Corps.

During the last decade, Peru has not only sustained stable growth, the countries economy is balanced due to variety of natural resources, policy makers have worked to develop investor friendly legal framework, and it has a fast growing middle class, opening new market opportunities.

Looking for a perspective country to invest your dollars (besides buying Mayu’s hand-knit alpaca scarves, alpaca hats, alpaca throws and more — all knit by Peruvians in the Andes Mountains)? – visit investment promotion agency Proinversion to learn why and how to investin Peru.

For more on Mayu, find us on Twitter, and Facebook, and hear more stories from the field on our Blog!

AREQUIPA, THE CAPITAL OF ALPACA YARN

Kati — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 22:01:56 +0000

As a Peace Corps volunteer in Peru, and before starting Mayu, I was fortunate to visit the world’s capital of the Alpaca, the Andean city of Arequipa, Wow, what a beautiful city — it is the second biggest in Peru, and source of 85% world’s alpaca fiber. The Peruvian Export and Tourism Promotion Agency PromPeru has been instrumental in the commercialization of the best alpaca fiber out there (which Mayu uses to knit our alpaca scarves, hats, wraps and more)!

PromPeru has understood the hidden potential, and started projects to increase quality, production and access. They have been increasing the international competitiveness of Arequipa’s textile producers and designers…

Two important activities were carried out in 2010. Firstly, PromPeru educated female entrepreneurs and textile designers from Arequipa in three key areas: design, market access, and business development. Secondly, Peru held “Peru Moda” Latin American fashion show last April, to facilitate access to international markets, which turned out to be great success, and will take place this April. Results have exceeded expectations – programs have indeed empowered female entrepreneurs in Peru and an increasing number of alpaca textile businesses are making their way up to high-end boutiques in global markets, just like Mayu!

With a similar mission of helping communities reach out to sophisticated target markets, Mayu started working 600 miles North of Lima Here at Mayu, we believe that the Peruvian alpaca we use is of the most superior image and quality. At the same time, the beautiful alpaca accessories we knit empower prosperity in local communities that have used alpaca for hundreds of years. Read more about Mayu business model in Peru, and visit our online store for high-quality, one-of-a-kind, hand-knit alpaca accessories.

For more, find us on Twitter, and Facebook, and hear more stories from the field on our Blog!

“THREAD RICH” – AN ARTICLE ABOUT MAYU’S ALPACA ACCESSORIES

Kati — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 20:52:58 +0000

Recently, Mayu was written up in Quintessential New Trier, a publication in the Chicago suburbs. I decided to share the article because it tells the story of Mayu and sheds some light into what goes on behind the scenes. And, the article does talk about my life. Yes, the Mayu founder — my inspiration, my goals, ME. I’m wearing Mayu’s melange alpaca hoodie, which has been a bit hit this winter season. We are really excited about this press! Thanks to Sherry Thomas at QNT.

Read the article HERE.

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THE GRANDMOTHER & THE FATHER OF MAYU WINTER ACCESSORIES

Kati — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 03:37:41 +0000

I’ve talked a lot about the inspiration behind Mayu and our winter fashion — winter accessories including winter scarves, winter hats and winter gloves.

As a result of my time in the Peace Corps, I met our talented artisans and made an entire community of Peruvian friends who welcomed me and took care of me for two years (read more about the history of Mayu here). Mayu, my host sister while in the Peace Corps, was only 2 years old when I met her. Needless to say, she is much older now and had almost forgotten who I was on my last trip to Peru! I recently wrote about the grown up Mayucita here. I’ve never, however, introduced the rest of Mayu’s family. Check back because I will be introducing the rest of the Mayu family in following posts!

I absolutely love these pictures of Mayu’s father, Arturo and grandmother. I took this picture last August, while working on Mayu’s 2010 collection of hand-knit alpaca accessories. Arturo was always asking me questions about life in America and we spent many of nights chatting about life in both Peru and the US. Arturo recently became the mayor of a nearby village, Huasta, and I’m very excited for him. He definitely deserves it and I’m hoping he will do great things over there. *Take note of the yellow Buddha sitting on top of an empty can of condensed milk on the windowsill.*

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SLIDE SHOW! PERU.

Kati — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 22:37:38 +0000

I was recently reading the Huffington Post and I came across a great little slide show of Peru, the land of Mayu’s hand-knit alpaca scarves, hats, shawls, wraps, throws and more! Our artisans come from the Ancash area, which is unfortunately not represented in these photos but you can read about it here.

“The South American country of Peru is an adventurer’s, gourmand’s and history buff’s dream. From the snow-capped peaks of the Andes to the deep jungles of the Amazon, arid deserts to rocky canyons, gorgeous churches to quaint colonial towns, the peerless Machu Picchu to the mysterious Nazca lines – not to mention the mouthwatering food and thriving nightlife of its spectacular cities – there is something for everyone in Peru.

These pictures don’t do justice to the incredible diversity and heritage of Peru; there are just a teaser. You need to see it with your own eyes!”

Click HERE to see the slide show.

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PROTESTS & MINING CONTRACTS IN ANCASH, PERU

Kati — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 00:45:38 +0000

A few days ago, I wrote a post about the protests and strikes currently taking place in Ancash, Peru. Unfortunately, Mayu’s artisans are stuck in Chiquian and are having a tough time getting to Lima to send our products. One of Mayu’s friends, Hilmer Reyes, is up in the region now and he was kind of enough to pass along these pictures –
One of Mayu’s knitters was about to walk four hours to the nearest functioning bus but we advised her against that…

The protests are a result of a new mining contract that is going to pollute Lake Conaccocha (about 40 minutes from Mayu’s knitters), which is an important source of water for the region.

To see MORE PICS of this situation, click HERE.

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PROTESTS INHIBIT THE ARRIVAL OF MAYU’S ALPACA SCARVES & GLOVES

Kati — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 18:49:08 +0000

I just got off the phone with Mayu’s artisans in Ancash, Peru. I was calling to check in about the upcoming trip to Lima to send Mayu’s alpaca scarves, hats, hoodies and throws. Christmas is just around the corner and we have some patient customers waiting for their holiday gifts. Unfortunately, our knitters are very worried right now as there are protests taking place as we speak. The highway down to Lima is closed and there is no way to leave town. What does this mean? Eeek, our package is going to be delayed…

We are keeping our fingers crossed that it gets here on time. More importantly, however, this matter shows that there exists a lot of unrest in the area due to mining. A new gold mine has been discovered and community members are protesting the extraction of the materials by large mining companies. Unfortunately, this is not the first time this issue has arisen in the area.

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MAKING PROGRESS ON PERU’S FIRST GREEN CLINIC

Kati — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 10:00:59 +0000

A few months ago, I blogged about the Yantalo Foundation, created by Mayu’s close Peruvian friend, Luis Vasquez. Luis’s foundation is in the process of creating the first green clinic in rural Peru. The foundation works in a small community, Yantalo in the Peruvian jungle. Although having lived in the US for the majority of his life, Luis is very connected to the community because it is the birthplace of his parents.

I wanted to share an updated video that I recently received from Luis about the project. Congratulations to the Yantalo Foundation, you are making great progress!

Click here to view the embedded video.

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GUINEA PIG, A PERVIAN DELICACY (AT LEAST IT ISN’T ALPACA)

Kati — Sun, 14 Nov 2010 09:00:58 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

In addition to once-in-a-blue-moon feasts of alpaca, Mayu’s artisans, friends and family love to indulge on “cuy”, commonly known as that cute little, furry Guinea Pig that you probably had growing up. I’ve been a vegetarian for many years so when cuy is served, I typically cringe and pass my portion along to one of my Peruvian friends who is glad to have an extra slice. During my recent visit back to my Peace Corps community where Mayu’s artisans work, I decided to capture a little bit of cuy preparation. Buen provecho!

To learn more about Mayu’s take on Peruvian food, read on here (lots of delicious things covered).

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