One look at Mawi Keivom's ornate glitter clutches and you can guess that her studio isn't the minimalist type. And indeed, antique garments, Indian fabrics, and a giant Mickey Mouse are just some of the trinkets adorning its walls. The daughter of a diplomat, Mawi grew up in India and has since traveled the globe collecting skills and inspirations. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Mawi brand, which she launched with her business partner and husband, Tim Awan, in London in 2003. I visited Mawi's colorful atelier and spoke to her about the brand's progress over the past decade and its now instantly recognizable accessory, the glitter clutch.
Shop Mawi here.
Eloise Moran: Congratulations on your tenth anniversary!
Mawi Keivom: Thank you! That was quite a milestone. I guess if we survived 10 years then we must be doing something right.
Would you say the brand has changed much over the past 10 years?
The product gets better and better because you learn and evolve, even though our style is very signature. We get new inspirations from traveling all the time!
When you first launched, did you start off with bags as well as jewelry?
We started off with bags, then a season or so in we started doing the jewelry because I was making a lot for myself. The jewels just hit it off, so we put the bags on hold [until 2012]. It's been bittersweet; we've learned so much and had no investment or extra financing from anyone. We've shed blood, sweat, and tears—when we first started we couldn't hire a lot of people so Tim and I did everything ourselves. When we first delivered to Selfridges, Tim and I carried the packages ourselves to the store. It's an amazing feeling when it's your product and you go into the department store to deliver it yourself.
I love your glitter clutch collection that we currently stock. What was the inspiration behind it?
With the glitter we wanted to do something really punchy for our first [bag] launch. I wanted it to just explode in terms of color, the components, the fabric, and of course the mad juxtaposition of these crazy elements that are so over the top but really work. The [bags] aren't trend specific; they're pieces of artwork in themselves—the kind of bags that won't ever date.
You could be wearing an all black outfit, then carry one of your clutches and outfit complete!
I wear them with jeans and a simple white T-shirt and it looks amazing. I don't look at them as evening bags. They're fun bags. I carry them during the day; I don't save them for a special occasion.
You were born in India. Would you say your upbringing has influenced your designs?
Definitely. I was born in India and come from a tribal culture in the mountains of northeast India where everything is a statement piece. They wear big corals, turquoise, and feathers in their hair! It's very American-Indian. If someone blindfolded you and you landed there you'd think you were in Mexico or Peru.
It's so colorful and so bright; pink is the navy blue of India. There are no rules about how much you can wear; they dress in ornate saris at seven in the morning. Also, the genders aren't that divided —men wear ornate things too—they wear shawls and jewels. When you look at Bollywood films, its a testament to their celebration of dressing; everything is over the top. Minimal doesn't exist in India and the jewelry that I do
Shop Mawi here.
Eloise Moran: Congratulations on your tenth anniversary!
Mawi Keivom: Thank you! That was quite a milestone. I guess if we survived 10 years then we must be doing something right.
Would you say the brand has changed much over the past 10 years?
The product gets better and better because you learn and evolve, even though our style is very signature. We get new inspirations from traveling all the time!
When you first launched, did you start off with bags as well as jewelry?
We started off with bags, then a season or so in we started doing the jewelry because I was making a lot for myself. The jewels just hit it off, so we put the bags on hold [until 2012]. It's been bittersweet; we've learned so much and had no investment or extra financing from anyone. We've shed blood, sweat, and tears—when we first started we couldn't hire a lot of people so Tim and I did everything ourselves. When we first delivered to Selfridges, Tim and I carried the packages ourselves to the store. It's an amazing feeling when it's your product and you go into the department store to deliver it yourself.
I love your glitter clutch collection that we currently stock. What was the inspiration behind it?
With the glitter we wanted to do something really punchy for our first [bag] launch. I wanted it to just explode in terms of color, the components, the fabric, and of course the mad juxtaposition of these crazy elements that are so over the top but really work. The [bags] aren't trend specific; they're pieces of artwork in themselves—the kind of bags that won't ever date.
You could be wearing an all black outfit, then carry one of your clutches and outfit complete!
I wear them with jeans and a simple white T-shirt and it looks amazing. I don't look at them as evening bags. They're fun bags. I carry them during the day; I don't save them for a special occasion.
You were born in India. Would you say your upbringing has influenced your designs?
Definitely. I was born in India and come from a tribal culture in the mountains of northeast India where everything is a statement piece. They wear big corals, turquoise, and feathers in their hair! It's very American-Indian. If someone blindfolded you and you landed there you'd think you were in Mexico or Peru.
It's so colorful and so bright; pink is the navy blue of India. There are no rules about how much you can wear; they dress in ornate saris at seven in the morning. Also, the genders aren't that divided —men wear ornate things too—they wear shawls and jewels. When you look at Bollywood films, its a testament to their celebration of dressing; everything is over the top. Minimal doesn't exist in India and the jewelry that I do