Travel with Yvonne among women
The Women's Letter - March 2024
Since February 7, Yvonne, president of Opportunity for Women, has been traveling to Laos and Vietnam, meeting with the association's beneficiaries and looking for new sales opportunities for women.
Development of new products and local sales
This trip is an opportunity for Yvonne to do research, explore, and develop new products with the women: scarves, placemats... especially for the local market. Yvonne has helped the women explore sales outlets on site in partnership with boutiques, museums or hotels... or by highlighting existing sales locations.
Laotian Blessing Ceremony
At the Young Lives center of our partner Fondacio in Vientiane, Yvonne experienced a memorable and very touching birthday evening around the traditional Baci ceremony . This Pre-Buddhist tradition is maintained everywhere by animists, Buddhists and Christians during all important events of life. It aims to restore balance in the body and soul and to protect against illness and misfortune . During the ritual, bracelets are tied around the wrist to fix the good wishes in the body and these bracelets must be worn for at least three days.
Introduction to vegetable dyeing and weaving
Visit to the Houey Hong Center in Vientiane, where volunteers and managers of the Young Lives Development Center were introduced to vegetable dyeing and weaving . This center organizes introductory workshops and offers professional training to maintain and improve this know-how that tends to be lost in the villages while there is a growing demand for ecological fabrics. Very nice experience with impressive results thanks to the help of very experienced trainers!
Creation of new local partnerships
In Laos, the cushions developed together during Yvonne's trip with the help of Mathilde (a young French woman - Opportunity for Women partner - who has been living in Laos for 5 years), seamstresses and weavers, have already found a buyer ! The Swiss director of the magnificent Pha Nya Residence Hotel in Luang Prabang which has just opened will equip his rooms with their very recent cushions dyed and woven in southern Laos.
Back in Vietnam, Yvonne went to meet the Lao weavers near Dien Bien Phu, who have maintained a precious know-how. In partnership with Opportunity for Women and Anh Chi Em , (local branch of Entrepreneurs du Monde), they grow organic cotton, make natural dyes and weave wonders. The goal of the stay is to help them create products to sell on site . This week, they obtained a partnership with the shop of the Dien Bien Phu Victory Museum to sell their products there.
