Bagmaya
words Svetlomir Tsvetanov
photography Bagmaya
In his three-month volunteering trip to Nepal, Carlos Terol finds inspiration and life-changing experience from the local community of Baghmara that leads to the creation of Bagmaya. A sustainable range of backpacks, bum bags and yoga mat bags made by people from disadvantaged communities with big hearts and even bigger smiles.
The Vik backpack
The Yaiza backpack
Bagmaya’s products are a long-term solution to empowerment through job opportunities and life skills enhancement. The craftsmanship that goes into the creation of each bespoke bag is well defined by the quality and unique design. Produced from natural cotton and sustainably grown hemp, Bagmaya puts the finger on the market by promoting total transparency in their production line - from ordering and all the way to delivery. On top, you get 100% recyclable plastic-free packaging at your door with fast carbon-neutral shipping (the UK only). That is not all. Ten per cent of the profit goes to youth-led and youth-ran empowerment organisation Yuwa. Good for you, good for Nepal, also good for the planet. There is more goodness behind this little London-based business, and we are putting our foot down with a determination to find out what else is there.
Carlos, tell us where does the name of your brand come from?
The inspiration for the name Bagmaya came from the name of the rural village where I volunteered. The name of that village was ‘Baghmara’, which in Nepali means ‘lion killer.’ As we wanted to create a brand with strong ethical values and also cruelty-free, we didn’t really want our brand name to be associated with killing. Therefore, we came up with the name ‘Bagmaya,’ which in Nepali means ‘love for lions,’ or as we also like to think of it, ‘love for bags' (the word 'maya' means love). This way, we managed to keep a strong connection with the roots of our brand, while giving it a nice twist with a meaning more aligned with our values.
Is there a particular story or memory that triggered your inspiration to create Bagmaya?
I think the first memory was when I was walking around the outskirts of the village where I was volunteering, working on some water projects, and I noticed that hemp was growing everywhere. After asking my Nepali friend Samad – the co-founder of Bagmaya – I found out that hemp grows naturally in Nepal, and it's actually an invasive species. The second memory of the moment that triggered the creation of Bagmaya, I was walking in Kathmandu with Samad. I saw beautiful bags and found out that they were made of hemp. I had never seen such material before, and that's when I decided that we could extend our positive impact in Nepal by creating a sustainable brand for local empowerment.
Which was the first item that came to life and how did this happen?
There was a long process of designing many different backpacks models. We wanted to create simple yet beautiful, unique and practical designs. The first design we actually manufactured was Yaiza, our best-selling backpack. It took a long process of iterative design, manufacture of prototypes, testing, re-design and manufacture again. We wanted our products to be of high quality, and we worked together with our local partner to improve the qualities and processes to ensure longer durability. After almost a year since the design started, we had the first batch of backpacks Yaizas ready.
There are so many places that you could have gone to do volunteering. How did Nepal end up being on top of your list?
Nepali culture had always attracted me, and in general, all eastern culture. But the truth is that it was a bit of luck that I ended up in Nepal. I am a Civil Engineer by background, and when I joined the International Citizen Service programme in the UK, I wanted to put my engineering skills to the service of those in need. Because of that, I chose the charity Raleigh International, because they had a programme of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene projects, which I thought was more aligned to my engineering expertise. They had three possible countries that I could have gone to Nepal, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. It was a matter of luck that they sent me to Nepal (or was it destiny?)
The Dakhla backpack
When you wear your bag, what do you usually carry in it?
The one I am using right now is our Dakhla backpack, which is the largest and also the sturdiest one. I generally carry in it lots of electronics, and it fits much more stuff that it seems it can! I take my 17" laptop, a Mavic Air drone with extra batteries, the GoPro with a microphone and many accessories, a solar power bank, a wireless mouse, the laptop charger, and a cable organiser with lots of cables, a hard disk and a small old mobile phone, just in case. Basically a full kit for the digital nomad!
What makes the Bagmaya such a suitable bag for everyday use?
We've designed them and manufactured them all with a lot of love! Plus, they are very convenient for pretty much every occasion. All our backpacks have a padded compartment for laptops. They also have a zipped pocket inside the main compartment, to put your wallet or keys. We've also designed them with a 'secret' safety pocket at the back, where you can securely place your phone or passport. Some of them also have a reasonably unique pocket on one of the shoulder straps very easy to access, where you can have a credit card or some notes ready to pay on the go.
On top of that, all of them have internal waterproof layers made with reused materials that would have otherwise ended up in rivers. It's not like you can bring your backpack underwater, but if you are out and it rains, it will keep your stuff safe and dry for some time. We all know how important this is, especially in the UK!
Could you, perhaps, tell us a bit about the production of a single bag? Where does the journey begin and end?
Everything starts in the remote hemp fields of Nepal. The hemp fields are highly regulated by the Nepali government to ensure there is a fair production and distribution of hemp in the country. After the hemp is sustainably grown and collected, it gets processed into the fabrics that we use. Once the fabric reaches Kathmandu, we dye them with natural dyes made with flowers to create our unique colours. Then, the materials are sewed together in our partner's workshop (we don't really call it factory) to become beautiful bags. From there, they are shipped to the UK, where we store them in our logistics warehouse near Heathrow. Once there, our products get distributed to the UK, Ireland and Continental Europe using DPD, a carbon-neutral shipment provider.
Thinking about sustainability, what are your recommendations to our readers on the day to day life?
There are just so many things one can do in the day to day life to become more sustainable. And I think it's all about becoming more aware of the little and significant changes that we can all do in our lives, to slowly move towards a more sustainable lifestyle. I also think it's better to be 'imperfectly sustainable' than nothing, as we all need to start at some point. We are big advocates of slow fashion, since fast fashion is a big contributor to climate change, with lots of 'hidden costs' associated, like a waste, plastic pollution, modern slavery, child labour, unethical processes, etc. So I would encourage the readers to learn more about slow and fast fashion, with an aim to move towards slow fashion industry. Only shop what you really need. Don't throw away clothes or other items, always try to fix them first or upcycle them. Buy second hand whenever possible. And if you ultimately need to buy something new, buy from ethical, sustainable brands that make things to last.
We have noticed that you are not only delivering a product but also trying to educate your customers through various topics on consumerism, lifestyle and travel? Why is this important to you, and what difference does it make?
As a sustainable, ethical brand, we do feel we have a responsibility towards improving people's lives and also the world. In that sense, it's not just about selling a product. It's about helping people become their better self – a more sustainable self. We want to empower people to live better, more sustainable lives. And we believe that education on sustainable consumerism, lifestyle and travel are critical to ensure a quicker transition towards a better world. It's just a matter of time that we get there, so the sooner we start, the better. And we all need to collaborate to get there.
What’s next in life for Bagmaya? Would there be another set of products we should be expecting, or are you sticking to travel accessories?
There are so many things we are dreaming about! We already have a few designs ready for the near future, although they may take some time to become a reality, especially after these challenging times we are all living. For now, we want to stick to travel accessories to create a strong foundation, and we are planning to launch male bags and tote bags at some point. In the long term, however, we are dreaming about many other products, mostly done with hemp, from shoes to jackets to wallets to hats. And who knows, if things go well, we would love to expand to other areas, maybe sustainable, vegan restaurants! They say, 'aim to the moon, so if you fail you may hit the stars.'
Bagmaya products are available from their online shop and give them a follow and like on Facebook and Instagram for more informative content. Use STARK10 on check out for 10% off across the shop.