India: A Lesson in Humility

Allowing opportunity

I knew my time at Sakura Bloom as their in-house photographer was going to be special from the get-go. First of all, here was a company that actually saw value in what a photographer can bring to a team. Not many companies follow this lead until they are much larger. Even then, the norm seems to gravitate to hiring us on a need-to basis.

From large seasonal campaigns, how-to videos, or simple little behind the scenes videos, keeping me in the fold 5 days a week (ok sometimes 7), provided Sakura Bloom with a dedicated photographer, videographer, Instagram storyteller, etc. Even though I had no children at the time, I thought about baby carriers 24/7. I was obsessed with ethical and transparent production as much as they were.

Within one year, it felt my dedication and ambition paid off. Lynne and her family invited me to to document a textile sourcing trip to four different cities in India.

Fast forward past immunizations, lost reservations, and massive language barriers, I met up with the Banach family in Jaipur to start our quest.

Setting expectations

It wasn’t lost on us that we were entering a whole new world where this lesson in textile education was going to be tricky to document. Customs and language barriers aside, there were two major concerns we always had on our minds: 1) How not to glamorize the hard work of the weavers, and 2) Don’t reveal your sources. Not glamorizing was simple if I only shot what I saw, but not revealing where we were was tough.

If I may digress for a moment, the amount of imitators in the baby carrier industry was a level 10 stress for us many days of the week. A version of almost every campaign I shot showed up on a competitor’s feed within weeks. Whole concepts were stolen and lazily covered up, or in some cases, copy was taken verbatim. I feel the freedom to discuss this now, not being with Sakura Bloom anymore, but I urge every consumer to thoroughly research the brands they buy from. Because, at the heart of this one, was a compassionate, brilliant woman, who was and is trying to provide a life for her family. Anyone who steals from that sacred space can frankly GTFOutta here.

But India! Here we are with the help of family friend Dinesh. His guidance leads us around the impossible to navigate streets where like the films promise, elephants and camels saunter alongside your tiny auto (think Tuk Tuks). Cars and motorbikes zip past you in no apparent fashion. But harmony (and horns) find a middle ground where this chaos transforms into order. There is enough beauty and color and delicacy to fill a 9000 page novel, but there are equal parts soot, literally. Wondering out loud what all the fires were about that surrounded our commute, I was met with a light hearted chuckle from Dinesh, “garbage day!”

Understanding origins

Everything comes into focus when we meet the weavers. Before working at Sakura Bloom, I gave zero percent of my thought process to where my clothing came from. One of their most well known baby carriers is made from dupioni silk, which comes from the mulberry trees of India. Little silkworms shed their magical cocoons which are then collected and spun to form one of the most incredible textiles on this planet. Don’t get me started on bamboo and khadi. All sustainable, and all natural. My new goal in life is to have a wardrobe only made from natural fibers.

Skills that save

Then there’s the artistry behind the weaving process. Over the course of my time with Sakura Bloom I’ve had the chance to work with and meet so many talented weavers. A special kind of soul that honors tradition, art, and patience. I believe that in this world of climate uncertainty, it will be the weavers, gardeners, and other earthly cultivators that will find solutions for our dying planet. The traditional will become the progressive, mark my words.

If I’m being honest

There were many times I felt in over my head with this project. Would I be able to capture this authentically? Would I do this country justice? Would we even educate our customers like we had hoped? Will we piss anyone off? (note: we always pissed people off) Will I miss any important moments?

I’m not going to lie to you, dear reader. As much as I’ve been told to secretly sell my talents in my blogs, I also know nobody wants to hire a self-touting jackass either. You know the one who talks about gear all day long or shows you their portfolio after five minutes of being introduced to you? Instead I want to reclaim the “portfolio blog” as a place where you can see who I am with all my questions in tow.

The fruits of collective labor

Fast forward again to a few months after our trip, once the precious textiles arrived at our workshop in Oceanside, CA. Now it was our turn to craft. We hand cut and sewed each piece into a cozy little baby carrier for parents around the world. I’m not too sure of the exact number of people who have a baby carrier from the Seek Collection, but I hope that with their purchase, they received more than just a tiny human tool belt.

The industry is far from perfect, but I know we’re inching closer. I hope that those who have bought from Sakura Bloom feel educated on the textiles they purchased. Ideally this hunger for understanding the origins of consumable goods pours over into everything they buy. It was my pleasure to provide the imagery to help aid that journey.