Who we are and what we stand for
Behind dokudu are Helena, Emre and Lisa. We have a long history of friendship that involves some changes in location, but for now, we are settled in Munich. As friends, we have a lot in common, but above all one thing: our enthusiasm for craftsmanship, durable products, and their history. Quality and good design are important to us. With dokudu, we want to pass on our love for Turkish culture, crafts and textiles.
How we do it
Hand-weaving crafts and their communities are nearly obsolete because of senseless mass production in the global textiles industry.
We believe in small-scale, sustainable production, transparent supply chains and fair working conditions. The handcrafted textile trade in Turkey is based on an old tradition and artisans that pass on the craft generation after generation. With dokudu, we want to do our part to ensure that it stays that way.
We know our partners in the southwestern part of Turkey personally, and we return to their companies time and again. We grow together, exchange ideas and learn from one another. For us, this work is both challenging and rewarding. The result of our joint work is a carefully selected range of products that is deeply rooted in Turkish textile culture.
That’s it? No.
We work with Turkish community centers near the Syrian border in the manufacturing of our bathrobes and the labeling of our products. Their aim is to bring the local population and refugees from Syria closer together. Working together increases empathy and strengthens the relationship between the two communities
The entrance of Women's Solidarity Center in Adana, Turkey.
In addition to supporting the community in all areas of life, our work with the community centers provides tailoring courses to Turkish and Syrian men and women living under hard conditions so that they may gain professional qualifications and thus lay the foundation for self-determined and financially independent lives. Supporting Turkish women on their journey to financial independence is particularly important to us. Upon completing the free job training, the newly trained tailors gain employment in their respective municipalities so that they can get practical work experience right away.
The community centers are run by local non-governmental organizations and the local Turkish authorities and are supported by the German Association for Cooperation (GIZ), the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and other international NGOs.
Learn more about the projects and our partner community centers.
Sustainable E-commerce
We all know that shipping causes emissions and packaging waste. We try to keep both to a minimum by:
- Using DHL’s GoGreen shipping service for all of our shipments and supporting climate protection projects to offset emissions
- Using as less plastic as possible
- Not enclosing unnecessary advertising flyers with our shipments
- Only using recycled and recyclable packaging material
believe in what you dokudu
