THE TRIBAL DRUM 

August 2016

Last weekend we celebrated family day! It was a fantastic day with everyone beautifully dressed, having fun and proud to celebrate our Tribal Textiles family. Over 300 guests sat down with family and friends to a delicious lunch, lovingly prepared by some of the amazing ladies from Tribal Textiles!

The choir entertained, singing traditional songs, as well as a more modern favourite, “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” with beautifully harmonised “awimbaways”. It was the first time many of the Tribal Team’s family members had visited the workshop, so to mark the occasion we did what we do best. We created a beautiful wall hanging, to which everyone added their handprints, from tiny tots to Grandparents. It can now be seen hanging up in the workshop, a lovely reminder of such a fun day!

We have also been busy developing a new collection of colourways in our screen print range . The fabrics are hand screen-printed onto premium slub weave
cotton and linen fabrics. The luxe feel and finish of the designs make them perfect for décor, especially with beautiful colour stories. We have created beautiful colour combinations, matching dove grey with coral and sage with duck egg blue amongst others. Staying true to our roots we have also created a starch interpretation of each design. For those looking for something specific or just something a little different we are also offering pantone matching, which means you can choose any colours you like creating truly original pieces.

We love coming up with unique and original gifts that you can’t easily find in the shops and we are very excited to be launching a new range of wine bottle carriers and ipad covers! After drawing, designing , meetings and all that goes along with bringing a new product to life they are finally ready! The beautiful screen-printed items are lovingly printed in our workshop and sewn by our talented sewing team here in Mfuwe. Don’t miss out and pick up yours in our store or atour online shop: www.tribaltextiles.co.zm

Tribal Textiles continues to work with Malimba Primary School, which we have been supporting since 2001. Malimba has had a really successful year with great
exam results and success outside the classroom, with netball and football competitions against other schools in the area. Mary Nkhoma is also due to start back at Malimba next term, having become a qualified teacher thanks to Make me Smile and Tribal Textiles, adding to the growing list of fully trained teachers at Malimba! Also we are happy to say that we have just finished rebuilding and painting a brand new sign for the school!

All the best for now from the tribal team!

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THE TRIBAL DRUM 

November 2015

THE TRIBAL DRUM 

APRIL 2015

We were delighted to welcome our artists back a few weeks ago after nearly three months’ absence during the rainy season. During that time there was much change in Zambia; we have a new President in His Excellency Edgar Chagwa Lungu; the rains have turned the dry, desolate bushvelt into a lush green wonderland; the farmers are getting ready to harvest their maize and at Tribal Textiles, we have made some improvements both front and back of house!

The PF government made improved roads one of their manifesto promises, and certainly better communications will help Zambia’s development. In the process of upgrading the road past Tribal HQ, our painted sign-pillars came off worse in an argument with a bull-dozer! Now that the rains have started to ease, we have rebuilt these pillars and Kennedy and his team of painters have decorated them in even greater style than before.

In the offices, the team have been busy too. In June, we are proud to say that we will be launching our own online shop, selling our products online and shipping them worldwide from our base in Mfuwe! See above for a couple of ‘screen grabs’ taken from the site. Our best-selling products will be available from the start, with more products introduced over time. Keep an eye on our website, Facebook page and Pinterest boards for details of launch date, promotions and further information. Our stockists will continue to hold large ranges of up-to-date stock in their shops worldwide, and we thank them for supporting us over many years of operations. Details of all our stockists can be found on our website.

While our online shop is a nod to the future, much of Tribal remains as it has since the company began nearly 25 years ago; the production process has evolved, but still relies on the skill, concentration and dedication of our team of artists. We have recorded excellent early-season production results and for that we thank each artist and the heads of department under the watchful eye of Moses Musa, our veteran workshop manager. New this year, working in partnership with Moses, is Priya Shah who joins us as Production Manager after many years of work in the safari industry. She is already proving a great asset and is leading the artists into a new year of producing high-quality textiles in the middle of the bush!

One of Priya’s first assignments is to develop Tribal’s new screen-print range. In advance, founder and Director Gillie Lightfoot has been working on new designs which are modern in their look but inspired by Tribal’s rich heritage. Her drawings and motifs echo the symbolism and creativity of Tribal but are more versatile in their possible applications. Products using these new designs will be available later in the year, both at our shop in Mfuwe and also online. Here are a few photos as a sneak preview of what we are working on.

The rains is also a time when we take stock of our designs and colourways and refine our range of products. We have shot new photos of an old favourite, Raindance in Rajasthan (coming soon to our website!) and we are pleased to announce the launch of a new design: Plume in Pomegranate (see images below). The photoshoot for Plume was heavily threatened when two vehicles got stuck in the mud on route to the site, but with perseverance, a fair amount of sweat and plenty of manpower, both were freed and we set everything up in time to catch the warm evening sunshine.

Following on our series of staff stories, we would like to tell you Stella Sakala’s story this time around. Stella is one of Tribal Textiles’ older members of staff; she is 55 and has worked with us for thirteen years. She is Head of our Washing Department, a role she attained in 2006 due to her very hard work and positivity. When we asked her what she most enjoys about her job she told us that she gets great satisfaction from seeing all the washed pieces blowing on the washing line at the end of the day. Knowing that she is taking home a regular, reliable wage is also a huge bonus to Stella as she has three children still in school. In total Stella has six children – her eldest daughter is 37 and her youngest is 7, so she has spent all her adult life raising children. Stella’s husband passed away in 1998, at which time she began to look for employment to support her family.  Her second eldest daughter is 30 and still lives at home as she suffers from serious epilepsy, so Stella also has to take care of her. Happily one of Stella’s sons passed Grade 12 at school so now works for a local safari lodge and brings in extra income to help the family. Stella’s wages have supported her family for many years and she has also saved enough to build a small house that they now live in. When she is not at work, Stella is very involved with her Church – she helps to run the Sunday school and also assists with offering free counselling to members of the community. In the future she hopes to build another house that she can rent for extra income.

As this newsletter goes out, there is a hint of dryness in the air, and the cacophony of birdsong is quieter than before – both of these are sure signs that the rains are coming to an end and we can look forward to 6 or 7 months of dry days. The promise of a new season is always exciting both for Tribal and for the safari world from which Tribal has always drawn so much creative inspiration. 

That’s it from us for now; we look forward to bringing you more of our news later in the season. In the meantime, here’s a lovely photo of George (the son of Evans, our head of painting) taken during our Raindance in Rajastan photoshoot

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THE TRIBAL DRUM 

April 2014

It’s hard to believe that the rainy season has nearly finished and we’re welcoming back our production team already! Although there are still some thunderclouds hanging around the Luangwa Valley, our artists have now been back to work for a month and 2014 is looking set to be a great year for Tribal Textiles.

The rainy season is always a great time to reflect on the past year, and what a year 2013 was for us. We launched exciting new products including our stunning 100% cotton adult and kids’ duvet cover sets. Two favourite Tribal Textiles’ designs, Flamboyant Pod and African Circles, were released in our latest colourways Earth and Maasai with both emerging as new top sellers. And in November we photographed our beautiful new design Honeycomb which can now be found on our website www.tribaltextiles.co.zm/new/honeycomb.

Our artists have thrived in the creative atmosphere of the past 12 months, as have the record number of clients who have joined us for Art Safaris. Last but by no means least, we have been thrilled to welcome new stockists from around the world in countries such as Singapore, Kenya and Germany.

Did you know… That wrinkles can be good for you? Elephants are born with their famous wrinkly skins that are essential for keeping cool. The wrinkles boost the surface area of the elephant’s skin and increase the radiation of body heat. After a mud bath, the wet mud trapped between the elephant’s wrinkles continues to cool the elephant long after it leaves the puddle!  So the next time you worry about wrinkles remember the elephant and yours might not look so bad!  

For the beginning of 2014, we’re really excited to introduce you to our seriously talented wood carver Mike Mbewe.

Entirely self-taught, Mike creates breathtaking, life-like animal carvings from memory and the occasional printed picture. Last year we asked him to carve us a rhino which he did with astonishing accuracy despite never having seen one in his life!

Mike’s beautiful carvings have starred in many a photo shoot over the years, with these stunning pieces perfectly complementing the African motifs found in our designs. Watching Mike carve is mesmerising and we hope you love his work as much as we do. 

This year we are also thrilled to be developing new resources for our international and local stockists. We thought it was high time we shared our expertise in all things textile and so we have been busy creating fun and informative presentations and infographics that will be popping up on our SlideShare page in the coming months. Look out for the story of Tribal Textiles from birth to today, top tips on merchandising different spaces and the How To of creating our textiles.

We love feedback too, so if there is something you’d like to know more about, please drop us a line and we’ll see about turning it into a helpful and colourful presentation that will brighten up your day!

In the meantime why not visit us on Pinterest and see what’s inspiring our design team this week!

It’s set to be an exciting few months as our General Manager Kirstie returns with her new daughter, we plan fresh photoshoots to update our website and our staff return from the long Easter weekend.

As always, we would like to thank all our wonderful clients and stockists world-wide for your continued support of this small business in the heart of the African bush!

THE TRIBAL DRUM 

July 2014

It’s been a busy few months at Tribal Textiles. We’re excited to have dispatched our first orders of the year to the US, UK and Australia amongst others and we celebrated Africa Freedom Day along with our artists and some mischievous visitors to the workshop! As winter sets in, we were also lucky enough to hit upon a sunny day to reshoot our Kunda design in Kalahari and Moroccan in Clays. See the full behind-the-scenes story here, while the new beautiful images are now available to view on our website.

It has been an especially magical few weeks for our General Manager Kirstie, who returned to Zambia in April with her fiancé Ed and baby daughter Sukey. In May Ed and Kirstie tied the knot in a magical ceremony on the banks of the Luangwa River, attended by friends and family, as well as a few baboons and elephants for good luck! Of course the day just wouldn’t have been complete without a Tribal touch, and it was with huge pride that the Tribal Textiles choir sang Kirstie down the aisle, and later treated the guests to traditional Zambian marriage songs to celebrate the day.

Another Tribal Textiles couple celebrating this year is our Assistant Head of Starching Max Sakala and his wife Hilda, who will be marking their 35th wedding anniversary in 2014! Max and Hilda were married at home on October 26^th 1979 and now have 6 children and 4 grandchildren who all live on the same family plot together, just down the road from our workshop.

When we asked Max what he believes is the secret to a happy and peaceful marriage he gave Kirstie and Ed the following advice:

“Think of your marriage as more than you two, it is the union of two families who will now help each other into the future. In marriage it is also important for a wife to have her own business where possible, to add to the family’s prosperity and also the wife’s character. Finally, try not to drink too much beer as it leads to misunderstandings!”

Wise words we feel, from our legendary Super Max.

Did you know….That the iconic African baobabs may be the oldest trees in Africa? Baobabs don’t develop growth rings like other trees, but have to be radiocarbon dated like ancient artifacts. Some baobabs have been dated to nearly 2,000 years old and one in South Africa is so large it houses its very own pub with wine cellar next door!

As always, our staff are at the forefront of our minds in 2014. Our Workshop Manager Moses and Accountant Nathan have been working to become Peer Educators with SHARe II, a USAID project dedicated to HIV/AIDS training and treatment. The project trains Peer Educators to provide guidance on getting tested, counseling, prevention, financial advice and positive living. Nathan and Moses have brought this knowledge back to our workshop, where they hold lunchtime meetings open to all our staff members.

The project has met with an incredibly positive response from our staff, with the opportunity to discuss issues in a supportive environment and gain up-to-date information encouraging many people to find out their statuses and get much needed treatment. Nathan explains that many of our artists have also begun holding meetings in their own communities, using the information from SHARe II to educate friends, neighbours and their families too. Although the issues involved can be very difficult to talk about, the process of communication has been vital in helping to destigmatise a condition that affects so many people in Zambia.

The project is ongoing, and Nathan and Moses will continue to work with SHARe II in 2014. Nathan says the most rewarding part is seeing people gain the confidence to get tested in the knowledge that with the right treatment they have the chance to go on to live healthier, more productive lives.

We are very lucky at Tribal Textiles to be surrounded by the stunning Zambian bush and we are always keen to support environmental initiatives. This year we have also been promoting our fantastic cushion bags in a bid to help reduce plastic bag use. With over 1 million plastic bags consumed worldwide per minute, our colourful and spacious cushion bags are a fantastic eco-friendly alternative that can brighten up grocery shopping for years to come! We are delighted that visitors to our Mfuwe outlet agree, and cushion bags have now become one of our top selling products.

Cushion bags come in our full range of beautiful designs and colourways; please see our website www.tribaltextiles.co.zm or drop us a line at sales@tribaltextiles.co.zm for more details.

It’s hard to believe that we’re thinking about Christmas already! Nevertheless, we are preparing our artists for our first Christmas orders to arrive and gearing up for the Zambia Arts and Design Show in November 2014. We’re also looking ahead to peak safari season here in Zambia and working hard on innovative and exciting new products for our range.

For more information and the opportunity to chat to us about placing an order, please email sales@tribaltextiles.co.zm. You can also keep up to date with all our activities on our Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest pages.

Until next time, we’d love to thank all our wonderful clients and stockists for supporting Tribal Textiles and all our fantastic artists and staff!

THE TRIBAL DRUM

August 2013

THE TRIBAL DRUM

March 2013

THE TRIBAL DRUM 

DECEMBER 2012

It is hard to believe that 2012 is drawing to a close and that we are buttoning down the hatches in preparation for the rainy season.  After the initial few large storms we have already seen the advancement of millions of bugs and started to fix the leaks in our roofs before the full weight of the African rains is upon us!

The year has flown by and we are extremely proud of all that has been achieved.  Our Production Team hit an all time high in the value of stock created, our core retail outlets have gone from strength to strength and we have welcomed exciting new wholesale clients in fresh countries including the Czech Republic, South Africa, Namibia and Japan.

THE TRIBAL DRUM 

August 2012

THE TRIBAL DRUM 

APRIL 2012

We have had a busy start to 2012 and are excited about the upcoming projects throughout the year.  Thanks to some great new orders placed by our loyal national and international stockists we were able to welcome our full team of artists back in March.  It was wonderful to have the Zambian music blaring out once more and to see Tribal Textiles come alive after production closed for the rainy season.

With our usual Tribal spirit we kicked off the year with a long list of creative projects; there are plans afoot for a new kids design and new contemporary and organic designs to keep things fresh for you.  We were delighted by the enthusiastic response to the new Safari and Contemporary bag ranges and are now pleased to announce the re-launch of our iconic Tribal Art design available in four stunning colourways Fire, Sky, Smoke and Earth and in two design styles, block and stripe!

Did you know…Zambia’s football team, or 'Chipolopolo' as they are affectionately known, beat the odds to win the Africa Cup of Nations this year.  In an intense game they won against the favorites, Ivory Coast, 8-7 on penalties after extra time.  This match was particularly significant because in 1993 Zambia’s most talented football team were tragically killed in a plane crash on their way to play in the same competition.  The Zambian coach explained it was the memory of those exceptional players that gave his team the strength to win and it was an event much celebrated across this football fanatic nation!

With so many new designs and colourways we felt it was important to enlarge our already spacious flagship store to accommodate them all.  With the ever increasing demand for our celebrated Kids Range we have extended our shop to include a kid’s bedroom where clients, of all ages, are found getting lost in their imagination surrounded by brightly coloured African animals and fairies in cherry blossom!  We have also extended our front showroom so guests are fully immersed in the colourful world of Tribal Textiles from the moment they step into our shop.

2012 sees new members joining our team.  Rosie, having cut her teeth as Retail Manager in 2011, has embraced the challenge of becoming our new Production Manager.  Lucy, after five years of running reservations and guest relations at a local Safari lodge, has taken on the mantle of running our three shops.  We also welcomed our new assistant Marie who, returning to her Zambian routes after her Design & Architecture degree in Belgium, is turning her hand to an array of different projects from management and photography to administration and computer skills.  It would not be fair to mention our staff developments without talking about our four new Tribal cats Eeny, Meeny, Miny and Mo.  Originally recruited to hunt rats it quickly became obvious that they were better suited to a more relaxing career.  They fill their days reclining in our shops only snapping to attention when guests arrive and lavish them with affection – the Tribal rats are delighted!

We are particularly excited to introduce a new Tribal Textiles project.  Our Director, Gillie Lightfoot, realized she wanted to use Tribal Textiles’ expertise to give more back and after talks with The Zambian National Milling Corporation about their desperate need to dispose of old Maize or ‘Mealie Meal’ sacs she initiated our ‘Amaizing Bag’ project.  Gillie set to work creating fun, durable and trendy designs using the used sacs.  Tribal Textiles then employed and trained three local ladies, Dorica, Naomi and Adella, to create the ‘Amaizing Bag’ range.  The stunning bags are now on display in the Tribal Textiles flagship store and plans are afoot to distribute them across Safari Lodge curio shops.  We will also be launching them to our export market.  The beauty of our ‘Amaizing bags’ is that they are not only a truly Zambian bag, made by local Zambians using Zambian ‘Mealie Meal’ sacs, but the profit from every sale is also donated to an incredible local charity, Project Luangwa.  Project Luangwa’s mission is to give back to the local community of Mfuwe whilst protecting the unique wildlife of this area; to find out more you can visit their website www.projectluangwa.org.   

Our next three months promise to be busy and we look forward to launching our new website along with some beautiful new Tribal designs.  In the meantime we hope you will follow us on Facebook under ‘Tribal Textiles South Luangwa’.  We will look to keep you abreast of our day to day activities and the highs and lows of running a textile and design company deep in the African bush! 

Dzikomo Kwambiri