Floortje Dessing on Compassion Wear

Unique and intimate were the key words for the atmosphere during the official opening of the T-shirt promotional that can justly be deemed a success. A collaboration between Nukuhiva, Karmanomics, Munja and the Golog Support Foundation led to the debut of several beautiful T-shirts. Floortje Dessing handed the first exemplaar to a pleased Lama Jigmé Namgyal on 1 March.

Interview Floortje Dessing
1 March 2011, Nukuhiva, Amsterdam

Floortje Dessing: ‘Nukuhiva was started on the basis of a book that I wrote. With the store we’d like to enhance the idea and understanding of Fair Trade clothing, and give it a higher profile within Dutch culture. Everything I wear is Fair Trade, and I don’t wear it because I have to, but because I think it’s nice. The good thing about it is that the people who make it are better off for it, not just the stores who sell it here in The Netherlands.’

Nukuhiva is much more than a Fair Trade clothing store. ‘We try to do something every year that makes us happy, a nice project that we can support, something that means something to us. Nukuhiva supported the project Join the Pipe, through which a water pipe was layed in the Congo. The kite hanging in the store is a project through which children in Palestine and in Kosovo receive support. Every year we do something like this. That’s why we’re so happy that we can do this project with Kees Klomp. It’s his project, and we’re working on it with him. This project shows that Nukuhiva shouldn’t only be a clothing store.’

The moment came when Floortje invited Lama Jimgé Namgyal to stand next to her. ‘Thank you so much for being here today. First we have a shirt I would like to give to you. Let this be the official opening, and start of the project here in Nukihiva, on this grey, cold day. But we make it a little bit more beautiful by handing this T-shirt to you, the first one.’

Floortje Dessing handing out the first T-shirt to lama Jigmé Namgyal

The brain behind this unique project is Kees Klomp, founder of Karmanomics. Kees: ‘I found it to be a good way of generating attention and funding for a charity, without asking people in a more traditional way to ‘please give something.’ In addition to that, it’s just very nice to create a product with a beautiful story behind it that people would really like to buy, something that was also a perfect fit with Nukuhiva, where products are sold with many different stories behind them.’ Floortje agrees with this. That’s what comes out when explains what she thinks of The Golog Support Foundation: ‘It’s of course fantastic that someone is taking the initiative to do something like this. No one can be against it. The nice thing about it is that since someone has taken action, there really is a result. There’s a medical office, doctors and medicine. That’s an amazing initiative. And it happens a lot. The Netherlands has many people who start this kind of thing, which I find fantastic. We always say that big NGOs have to take action, but many small drops fill a bucket. That’s what I like so much about this. It’s also quite unusual that Lama Jigmé Namgyal is involved.’

In order to make this project a succes, the T-shirts will have to be sold, of course. This will happen at a few places in The Netherlands. Floortje: ‘Our intention is that the T-shirts sell as quickly as possible in as many places as possible in The Netherlands. We’re very happy that we’re the first, along with the Wereld Museum. I can only say that this is a very good project. It’s fantastic that we at Nukhiva can help a little bit. And of course I’ll wear it now and again on television. Let’s get that larger medical post built!’

Nukuhiva, Compassionwear and Golog Support