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October 19, 2024

No visual excess. Architectural. Quiet. Confident. – The label Oyuna

Susanne Barta

Die Begegnung mit Oyuna Tserendorj hat bei mir einen nachhaltigen Eindruck hinterlassen. Sie ist die Co-Gründerin und Kreativdirektorin der gleichnamigen Marke Oyuna. Im Sommer war sie in Bozen zu Gast beim von franzLAB kuratierten Moontalk, den ich moderiert habe. Begleitet wurde sie von Sabine Loh, der Gründerin von Slow Media Solutions, und ihrem Mann Frank, die den Talk angeregt haben. Es war ein schöner, interessanter und auch berührender Abend. Oyuna hat von ihrer Arbeit und ihrer Herkunft erzählt, ihren Designstil erklärt und eine Lanze gebrochen für ihre Heimat Mongolei und eine achtsame Textil- und Modeproduktion. Ihre Klarheit und konsequente Haltung zu den Themen, die sie beschäftigen, war wohltuend. Kein Marketing-Gerede, keine Floskeln. Die Stücke werden in London, wo Oyuna lebt, entworfen und in der Mongolei hergestellt. Die Marke steht für feinsten mongolischen Kaschmir, der nachhaltig und fair gesourct und produziert wird. Oyuna_2-3 (c) Matteo-VegettiOyuna Tserendorj ist in der Mongolei aufgewachsen, hat in Budapest Textil- und Bekleidungsingenieurwesen studiert und 2002 Oyuna gegründet. Jetzt, wo die Temperaturen sinken, und die Wollpullis wieder ausgepackt werden, ist der richtige Zeitpunkt, euch Oyuna (nochmals) vorzustellen, da ich annehme, dass die meisten von euch nicht beim Talk dabei waren.

You founded Oyuna in 2002, what motivated you to start your own brand?

I really wanted to stay connected with Mongolia while living abroad. And not just being a Mongolian living abroad and doing any job, but working with Mongolian cashmere and all the people who produce it. Oyuna_4 (c) Oyuna TserendorjHow would you describe your design style?

Stripped off any visual excess. Architectural. Quiet. Confident.

Your products are responsibly sourced and made from Mongolian cashmere. Tell us more about the production process.

We have a very short supply chain which starts with nomads, who are members of SFA (Sustainable Fiber Alliance) cooperatives, and they produce fresh, sustainable cashmere to SFA standards. Then it goes to one of our two factories we work with for 22 years, since the day we started the business. This factory is SFA certified and fully vertically integrated, meaning they produce our designs from raw cashmere to finished product, all in one place. The second factory is not officially SFA certified due to costs and paperwork. But it is an equally high-standard factory with amazing work conditions and ethics. They do not make their own yarn, so they source SFA yarn from the spinning factory they worked for years.Oyuna_5 (c) Oyuna Tserendorj Hand sorting raw cashmereYou describe Oyuna as “Soulful Cashmere”. What does this mean to you?

I think soul is the most important thing in life. We could also use the term energy. What energy we create, or what energy a product has, energy of people around us, environment. What we do in life, how we go about life, and what we create, needs to be as soulful as possible. When I say Soulful Cashmere, I mean it is created by soulful people, our amazing nomads who work so hard and who live one with the land, guarding it for generations to come. The land our cashmere comes from is so soulful. The energy of the factory workers whose craftsmanship transforms raw cashmere. Our customers who get the whole message and ethos. Our team. All of it together creates Soulful Cashmere. Oyuna_6 (c) Oyuna TserendorjYou are the daughter of a Mongolian shepherd; how did you grow up?

I grew up in the capital, Ulaanbaatar. My parents were socialist intelligentsia. I grew up reading Tolstoi and Lermontov and having very usual teenage time gathering with friends, playing guitar and chatting for hours.

What still shapes nomadic culture today?

Nutag means land in Mongolian, one’s place of birth. It has a very deep meaning in our culture. It is similar to the term terroir in French. Nutag represents deep respect for the land, the nature, the animals, the livestock. Everything revolves around it. We Mongolians love singing and most of our songs are odes to the beauty of our land.Oyuna_7 (c) Oyuna Tserendorj Washed cashmere coming out of machineThe social and environmental impact of modern cashmere production is enormous… What would it need for the industry to be more sustainable?

Natural equilibrium is the answer for anything to be sustainable, and even go beyond that – to be flourishing. Cashmere is a precious fiber, and it needs to be produced with respect to precious nature – meaning it cannot be overproduced. It should only be produced in quantity and quality that the land can take. Perhaps non-sustainable sourced cashmere needs to be taxed to help reduce overconsumption? Cashmere is a gift of nature, and it should be used by humans as it is an important source of income for the nomads who take care of the land. But it cannot be over-commercialized.Oyuna_8 (c) Oyuna TserendorjYou have been featured in very prestigious magazines, what is the feedback from your customers?

Our customers usually say they love the combination of our quality and our designs, that are timeless but different. They love the brand story and they love the personal interactions with the brand.Oyuna_9 (c) Oyuna TserendorjHow do you dress yourself? What is important to you?

I dress to be ready for any occasion – going for a school run, travelling, meeting, going to a gallery opening. Which means I want to be presentable but comfortable, but also quietly standing out of a crowd. To do that, I have a set of very few garments each season – that work for all these occasions, they can be mixed and matched. That way I do not have a decision fatigue each morning what to wear. I just grab and go. For example, I wore a pair of our cotton culottes for 2 summers now – that work for a photoshoot on the mountains of Mongolia and I was equally comfortable walking in them on the streets of Los Angeles. Oyuna_10 (c) Matteo-VegettiOyuna hat mir ein sehr schönes Top aus feiner Baumwolle geschenkt, das ich beim Talk getragen habe – und ich habe mir einen ihrer Pullover bestellt. Er ist gerade angekommen. Die Qualität ist bestechend, das Design zeitlos schön. Der Winter kann kommen.Oyuna_11-12 (c) Susanne BartaFotos: (1, 4–9) © Oyuna Tserendorj; (2, 3, 10) © Matteo Vegetti; (11, 12) © Susanne Barta 

>> Supported by Kauri Store (M), Oscalito (L) und meiner Freundin Kristin << 

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