After the displacement of more than 100.000 people from Artsakh in late 2023, the Fashion and Design Chamber of Armenia took responsibility upon itself and started a capacity-building and mentorship programs for displaced women and youth from Artsakh in Kotayk region. The Regional Post interviewed Elen Manukyan, co-founder of FDC, and the participants to gain insights into the valuable experiences they offer.
Text : Hena Aposhian
Photo : FDC
Established in 2017 to support and enrich the Armenian fashion industry, the Fashion and Design Chamber of Armenia (FDC) has been serving as a creative platform that unites designers, brands, and startups from fashion and other related sectors in Armenia. Having established these core beliefs since day one, FDC took it upon itself to launch two initiatives to help the displaced women and youth from Artsakh who had been engaged in fashion, textile, and other design-related sectors.
While receiving support from GIZ within the Private Sector Development TVET South Caucasus Programme, the first project was longterm technical courses for women who had clothing ateliers, shops, and handmade businesses back in Artsakh. CRELAB Kotayk, established in the framework of “Labs for Change” project funded with UK aid from the British people, became the primary location for this project, operating as a networking platform with several running workshops such as textile, fashion, design, digital marketing, and similar other fields. For several months now, FDC has been providing short-term technical and business courses and start-up and mentorship programs with local fashion experts and designers. The main focus is to enhance the knowledge and skills of the participants, create employment opportunities, and unlock the full potential of human capital. All the activities have been organized in the newly created laboratory of FDC premises, which was established in the framework of CRELAB project funded with UK aid from the British people.
Christina Hasratyan, one of the participants of the program, simultaneously participated in both the business management course and the sewing construction course, during which she gained enough knowledge to establish her own business properly. “I am a lawyer by profession, and since I am still a beginner in this field, I am taking my first steps. At first, I was a little afraid of whether it would work for me, but the people at CRELAB were supportive and made me more confident. Now, I have already started sewing kitchen towels, table covers, table mats, napkins, and decorative pillows.”
The second project entailed working with youth from Artsakh. Before the war, the FDC worked with these students, hosting them at the FDC’s offices and introducing them to their team and designers. When the blockade happened, they switched to an online platform and held online masterclasses once a week. “After the war, these young people didn’t go to any institutions, so we stepped in and hosted them in CRELAB with their teachers three times a week,” explains Elen Manukyan. After the government assigned these students to institutions in Armenia, the program schedules were adjusted to accommodate their attendance, and new courses such as Photoshop, marketing, collection development, and sewing were added.
Ani Gayamyan, one of the students from Artsakh, says, “CRELAB created a very warm and lovely environment for us. While studying there, we got to know the designers, interacted with them, and learned about their experiences. The program gave me a lot of experience, ideas, and precious knowledge.”
FDC later developed a new curriculum for these students with the help of their designers. This was done while also retaining their original teachers from Artsakh within the team and engaging them to work alongside FDC. Lusine Mirzadjanyan, one of the teachers from Artsakh, learned about FDC’s courses when she had to move to Kotayk after the situation in Artsakh. “Although the workshop was for five months, I managed to develop some essential technical skills and business decision practices.” She explained that CRELAB’s ambiance is very warm, and once you finish a course, you want to come back and learn something new. “Since December, I have participated in 4 workshops while working there with our students. They’re doing lots of work to help the people of Artsakh to integrate here. These classes are very helpful, and we surely needed this.”
Through these past two programs, FDC has worked with more than 70-80 people from Artsakh. As for students, they have made their very own “Artsakh Collection,” which the students have created with the help of designers. The collection comprises 8-10 looks, each representing a student’s depiction of Artsakh, which entails churches, backyards, statues, and more. The FDC is planning to showcase the end results in June.
The programs also aimed to provide the participants with a network, as they must acquaint themselves with clients and competitors and understand market dynamics if they intend to sustain their work in Armenia. Although new people can join their programs, Elen explained that their primary focus is not quantity but quality. For example, several of their students attending the startup classes also engage in additional programs such as sewing, corset making, photoshop, marketing, and more. “We strive to support them in every conceivable manner and ensure accessibility to all our programs.” Moving forward, FDC intends to develop new courses tailored to the needs of both the market and the participants.
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