Exporting Fiji in the most beautiful way

LICE MOVONO

DESPERATE times call for desperate measures and one may call a global pandemic that shut down the country’s main income earner, tourism, such a time.

But for the creative and innovative there is never a desperate time, there’s only opportunities to reinvent.

Sonam Sapra’s response when COVID19 all but shut down her business was at first like everyone else’s, a big shock.

But the mother of two decided it was also time she could spend with her family to rest and in that time a lightbulb moment came on that highlighted an idea that if holiday makers could not come to Fiji than she could through fashionwear, export Fiji to them.

Originally from Taveuni, Sonam is lead designer in the fashion line, Baby Boo which functions as the main fashion presence for department store chain, Jacks of Fiji.

The boutique was wholly dependent on the 900,000 visitors per year Fiji tourist industry which officials had predicted would in 2020 surpass the 1million visitors mark.

“I was positioned quite well with Jack’s of Fiji in the aspect that this is a large manufacturer that is not only able to literally manufacture an excellent quality range, but it also has the distribution outlets in all the right places so that the collection can be seen and bought by the tourists that were coming in,” Sonam said.

“The markets that were coming in were loving the line because there was a Fijian label that wasn’t something that they could get outside of Fiji.”

“We had gotten to the next stage where we were getting really brave and we were like let’s really grow this range and let’s, let’s do it. Let’s fill up a whole boutique, let’s just make it maybe boom. And then the pandemic hit.”

Born in Fiji to a United Nations worker, Sonam spent a large part of her childhood around the world and most of that was in the United States. An artist by training and background, Sonam entered the fashion world in 2012 when she came onto the Fiji Fashion Week (FJFW) scene describing herself as a fabric designer, not fashion designer.

Inspired by the flora and fauna of Fiji, Sonam’s craft stands out in that she illustrates all of what goes onto her garment by hand before she digitally transfers it on, making her product very unique and almost impossible to replicate.

Fresh off the back of a difficult personal setback, she came back home with little more than confidence inspired by her fathers observation that her art was good but that maybe she needed to make it wearable and therefore good enough to sell.

“It was a personal journey for me to come to Fiji and start teaching myself at the beginning, textile printing or surface printing because once I understood how to to perfect that, then I could really apply my art to any surface. I used what I had access to and developed it into a commercial product.”

It has been a personal journey of reconnecting with her local roots and with herself, something she doesnt think would have happened if she didn’t come back home.

“I have a lot of pride for the country. Everything I do with my fashion is about how do i reinvent and refresh my prints to show the beautiful energy and spirit of Fiji that comes from the flora, the fauna and the people. Every year I make it just about increasing that wow factor.”

“Everything I do will always be about showing Fiji in the most beautiful and freshest way possible.”

It is a formula that has sent Baby Boo prints out the Jacks of Fiji doors like hot cakes, until it all stopped. Jacks of Fiji was one of the first businesses to report massive layoffs early into the pandemic.

“COVID-19 had a massive, massive impact. I mean fashion just shut down basically for a couple of months. Then some brave individuals started coming out with their collections which gave me a kick in the butt because we were so used to tourists to come into the country.”

“I understand that everything happens for a reason so when this happened I did not take it as a negative thing it was kind of a relief. I was like wow, this is hard work so i told myself, enjoy the break.”

As Sonam and her team at Jacks of Fiji took a break to process the shut down of what had been a flourishing business, she saw an opportunity to start showcasing manufacturing quality in Fiji and start focusing on trade.

“So now Jacks of Fiji and I are really really invested in just making a gorgeous product, so that it can get out now and when the consumer is at it, it is enticing people that come in.

We’re making a product that represents Fiji and in the most beautiful aspect that allows the marketing to be functional because they can also be worn and adored, so that’s basically what this collection is.

Called the Garden Island Jewels Royal Collection, the collection in her own word, “stunning.”

Her favourite part about the garments is she said people looking at it will see stunning print and construction.

“Its bright and it’s bold and it’s colorful and it’s loud. It’s pure bling.”
“I don’t think my collection is different, because we’re all making fashion and putting it out there but my tactic is different in the aspect that I’m a very commercial person. I love to make a Fiji product that can compete in creative ways and I take pride in that.”

“I saw an opportunity where people who can’t come to the country and can’t take back a memory of Fiji. We will take it to them ourselves a part of Fiji they can adorn and feel a part of Fiji and keep us in our minds, until they can come back to our shores.”