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With a mission to preserve and find new ways for the sustainable development of traditional hand woven products in Vietnam, Mrs. Thu Thuy - founder of Chie Dù Pù Dù Pà has been striving to pursue this journey for many years.
In 2008, Mrs. Thu Thuy participated in the “Northwest region rural development” project sponsored by JICA – a Japanese program aiming to improve the tailoring skills of Vietnamese ethnic artisans. Over the period of 3 years, the project ended in 2011, but with many unanswered questions remaining. regarding occupations for local residents, the future of handicrafts, and the way to promote traditional handwoven products.
However, thanks to the encouragement from Japanese experts and the serendipity with the weaving occupation, Mrs. Thuy was incentivized to find new ways in order to develop handicrafts produced by ethnic communities. Hence, she started a business named ‘Chie Du Pu Du Pa’ with the purpose of helping ethnic groups preserve and promote traditional hand woven fabrics, thereby increasing their livelihoods as well as spreading the beauty of indigenous culture.
During the first 5 years, Mrs. Thuy spent most of her time directly guiding the locals whenever there was a new sample. Then, the authorities would send 1 or 2 skillful artisans to Hanoi for trainings. These days, with the development of modern means of communication and the improved skills of the locals, Mrs. Thuy only needs to send information, images, and customers’ requests, from which the locals can satisfy their demands.
Having not only an in-depth understanding about the cultures of ethnic minorities, but also the ability to learn and exchange knowledge about weaving continuously, Mrs. Thuy invents a lot of ideas for her products. Thus, Chie’s high-quality handicrafts reflect many cultural characteristics and the essence of life. Some significant products include clothes, scarves, hats, curtains, pillows, coasters, toys, keychains, stuffed animals, etc.
‘Chie’ is a common name in Japan, which pays tribute to Japanese experts that helped to lay the foundation for the “Northwest region rural development” project. Also, ‘Chie’ is the name of ‘the little pepper girl’ who is a cartoon character that was closely associated to Mrs. Thuy’s childhood.
‘Du Pu Du Pa’ originates from Thai language, which means ‘in the forest and on the mountain’. At Chie, everything is simple and rustic, reflecting the spirit of ‘Du Pu Du Pa’.
Chie cooperates with many ethnic groups that weave fabrics, namely Na Sang (Dien Bien), Chieng Chau (Hoa Binh), some families in Can Ty, Ha Giang, Pa Co, Hoa Binh, Ky Son, Nghe An, and even in Tay Nguyen. Chie’s products are made as a sample in Hanoi, before being transferred to the Chieng Chau weaving organisations for Thai people to complete.
There are many activities held at Chie to promote the culture of ethnic groups, like the ‘Touches of Time’ exhibition, the ‘Significance of wrist-binding ceremonies and wedding customs of ethnic minorities’ talk show in April 2021 that attracted many young people.
Moreover, Chie welcomes many guests on a daily basis, who comes not only for shopping, but also to learn about stories of traditional weaving and life of ethnic groups from Mrs. Thuy, such as one about Khau Kut and Kut Pieu that are Thai couples being well-known for their love and loyalty.
According to Mrs. Thuy, there are many ways to preserve the tradition and culture of ethnic minorities, but this relies on whether individuals and communities can acknowledge these values or not.
To conclude, Chie Du Pu Du Pa still has to go through a long and challenging journey, but we still thrive to deliver all the stories and meanings behind each product.
