We had an exciting opportunity to interview Rachel and Tif, Founders of Yala designs, a beautiful and high quality comfortable clothing brand created using the finest eco-friendly, sustainable materials.
1) What does YALA mean? How did you two meet? How did YALA come to be?
Tif: YALA was founded in 1996 by a couple of world travelers who were looking for a way to get a clean and comfortable night’s sleep wherever their travels took them. They invented the original silk Dreamsack® by sewing two sheets together to create a bed liner. While teaching English in China, they developed a relationship with a small sewing factory that was owned by one of their students’ families, which we still partner with today. The dreamsack was such a success that they gradually expanded the line into lightweight, sustainable travel clothing, sleepwear and bedding made with bamboo. They were one of the first companies to import bamboo products into the US.
Rachel: Eventually, the name ‘Dreamsacks’ did not represent the growing range of products or materials. ‘YALA’ developed from a desire to have a short, catchy brand name that captured the spirit of the company. YALA loosely translates to a celebratory greeting in many Middle Eastern countries. Our newer twist on YALA is the acronym: Your Adventure Lies Ahead™, to pay tribute to the travel lifestyle that is YALA’s legacy. Today our products are just as well recognized for relaxing at home.
Tif: We met early on as employees at YALA, around 2006. I worked in production, sales and systems management and Rachel worked in creative direction, marketing and web development. We quickly became best friends, working and raising children alongside each other. Eventually we had the opportunity to head up clothing design as a team, which really sealed the deal! In 2018 YALA was struggling under new ownership and went up for sale. We lacked the traditional experience or assets of buying a business, but between ourselves we knew the general ins and outs of the company. Encouraged by friends and family, we pursued the purchase and in September 2019 became the new owners!
2) How do you ensure that animals are treated humanely for their baby alpaca fibers?
Rachel: For the small line of Alpaca wraps and scarves we make, we partner with a Fair Trade certified Alpaca ranch and garment cooperative in Peru. To maintain their certification they are monitored and vetted for humane practices. Because Alpacas are such an integral part of Peru’s indigenous culture and livelihood, they are treated with the utmost respect and care in a reciprocal relationship. Baby alpacas are not sheared for their wool until they reach one year old.
3) What kind of sustainable standards are met during the fabric and garment construction process?
Tif: Our primary fabric is bamboo which is selectively harvested from the Shunan Forest in China as part of the maintenance and regeneration of this nationally protected forest, because of how rapidly bamboo grows. The harvesting process provides steady jobs in an area that has a high poverty rate. Once harvested, it is transferred a short ways (think Portland to San Francisco, about a 5-6 hour journey) where it is processed into fabric using a closed loop, viscose process where 98% of the dyes and water are recycled. We use exclusively AZO-free dyes and we are Oeko Tex 100 Certified.
The fabric gets made into garments a few hours down the road in Changshu City in our own factory, which employs 25 long-term garment workers whom we have a unique and close relationship. Many of them have been with us over a decade and are like family to me from my visits over the years, when I was heading up production under the founders. I check in with the production manager there daily.
4) Especially now during the global pandemic, do you believe more people will demand sustainable clothing brands/options?
Rachel: Absolutely! We have always defined sustainability broadly to include not only the environmental considerations, but also the ethical commitment to generously take care of everyone on our domestic team, as well as being accountable to the wellbeing of our international production partners along every step of the supply chain. With the pandemic, sustainability is taking on an even more generalized association with being a safer option because of the quality control, cleanliness, transparency and oversight that comes with it.
5) Could you please share a piece of advice for other emerging Women entrepreneurs from your experiences as a Women owned business?
Tif: Don’t let a few “No’s” discourage you. If you believe in your vision, keep moving forward until you find your cheerleaders! In our initial attempts to get funding we were turned down several times before finding a female banker who believed in us, our experience with the company, and the legacy of YALA as a Women-owned, Women-run business. This is why we are passionate about supporting Women entrepreneurs.
One of my goals is to have a scholarship for female entrepreneurs that can provide the start-up funding that is so often a hindrance. You should not have to be independently wealthy or take on an overwhelming, high-risk loan to bring a vision to life that has the potential of creating jobs in your community and uplifting others around you. That should be valued and encouraged!
6) On Instagram you have been posting black-owned businesses to support and follow, which we love! Could you please discuss your company culture/values as well as hiring process, diverse employees? Could you also share your charitable causes with us?
Rachel: Sure thing. YALA has always celebrated diversity as a company founded on world travel and the discovery and appreciation of all cultures that result from it. We have maintained and stood up for our partnership with China throughout a political climate that increasingly continues to paint that culture in overt and covert racist tones which has certainly not let up with the current administration.
Yala has always been inclusive in hiring photographers and models, as well as partnering with a diverse background of influencers, which we have carried forward in these first 10 months as owners. We are currently rebuilding our retail website and are especially focused on having it better reflect our values of diversity and inclusiveness to BIPOC, so that everyone who comes in touch with YALA feels represented.
When we acquired YALA, our first order of business was to return the company to Ashland (where it originated) from Eugene (where it was relocated in the previous transition of ownership). We were focused on creating a tight-knit team and quickly selected six qualified people from our immediate circle of friends and family. With our entire warehouse and infrastructure to move, wholesale accounts to maintain and orders to fill, we did not have the luxury of a drawn-out hiring process. Admittedly, we are a very White staff here in the office, in a very White demographic (92%) of rural Southern Oregon.
With our recent and rapidly growing awareness of the importance of creating an internal culture that is more representative of our inclusive values, we looked at this and realized that going forward we need to slow down and expand our employment search more broadly to allow equal opportunity for everyone in our community, which we hope will attract a more beautifully diverse and talented team!
Thank you Rachel and Tif for taking the time to share Yala Designs with the Deliberately Considerate community. Please follow Yala on instagram @yaladesigns and check out their entire clothing and bedding collection here.
How could we resist modeling and trying out the ultra soft, Havana V-Back Maxi Dress in Cameo? The lightweight and buttery, 100% organic cotton dress made with low impact dyes, effortlessly glides with your body with every step, while looking absolutely stylish.
