We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Arjuna Durrant. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Arjuna below.
Arjuna, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.
Launching Jytte Designs was the biggest risk Ive ever taken. I have always been a designer and maker but it wasn’t until I lost my job with the initial COVID lockdowns that I decided to launch my own business. When the initial lockdown happened in March of 2020, my son was 1 and a half years old. I suddenly found myself at home, without a job or childcare and a partner who worked out of the house. Finding a way to help support our family while working from home and caring for my son was a necessity. With my partner’s support we used our initial subsidy check to turn our attic into a studio space and I got to work designing my first official collection. I would go up to the attic while my son napped and work on bag designs, doing everything myself from pattern making to hand cutting the leather pieces, hand punching the stitching holes and sewing every bag by hand with just a needle and thread. It became therapeutic in a way. The state of the world felt so overwhelming and raising a toddler under stay at home orders was the most challenging thing Ive ever experienced. But when he rested and I got to sneak up to my studio and get into the rhythm of this meticulous hand stitching work, I felt at peace. After designing the initial 6 bags in my collection I decided to build my e-commerce site and launch Jytte Designs in December of 2020. I found a local Detroit company, Daylight factory, to laser cut my pattern pieces in small runs. I hired friends to model and photograph the collection and I continued doing all the hand stitching and bag construction myself. Investing precious much time and money into this dream felt so risky, especially considering the state of the world. The flexibility of working from home, caring for my son, and doing something I loved made it all worth while.
Arjuna, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
As a creative and visual person cultivating my personal style has always been important to me but the fast fashion industry is not in alignment with my personal values. Protecting the environment and the humanity of workers/makers worldwide is currently at odds with the practices of most large fashion labels. I want to be a part of changing that. The mission of Jytte is to create unique, beautiful bags for the conscious consumer. Our bags are hand crafted, modern heirlooms, made to last for years to come. Consumers can feel good about buying our products which are ethically made entirely in Detroit with sustainability as a pillar of our company. Every bag is designed to be evergreen, meaning the style will stay relevant and fashionable for years to come, rather than conforming to seasonal trends.
Each bag is made to order, reducing waste and eliminating the practice of discarding unused product at the end of each fashion season.
All of our leathers are bi-products of the agricultural industry and are biodegradable. Unlike vegan alternatives, which are often made of plastics and require fossil fuel extraction, water waste and toxic dyes, our leather will decompose into the earth.
We are a plastic free company. Our packaging and shipping materials are also 100% recyclable and biodegradable.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
I love working with my hands and turning an idea into reality. My bag designs always start in my head; with the idea of a color, shape, function that I haven’t seen before. The idea turns into a sketch, the sketch into a pattern and then the first draft of the physical bag and as much as you design and plan for the final product, once you actually stitch it together, there’s always a surprise. Whether it’s the proportions, the way the leather drapes, the size of the bag in your hands or against your body. There will always be edits, happy accidents, sometimes complete failures that end with a design being dropped entirely. I love that process, the anticipation, the excitement when a design really works, even the disappointment of a flop can feel rewarding in its own way. I think it’s the surprise of something you thought you understood or could control, having an unexpected result. I love the quote from “The Overstory” by Richard Powers “As certain as weather coming from the West, the things people know for sure will change. There is no knowing for a fact. The only dependable things are humility and looking.”
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
My initial investment was a small savings I had from waiting tables combined with the initial COVID 19 stimulus payment. It was only a few thousand dollars, which may not seem like a lot to loose but when you’re raising a young child in the midst of a pandemic, risking any amount feels huge. luckily I was able to recoup my initial investment quite quickly and then invest in more leather and supplies with the profits I had from sales. Jytte is still a very small operation and in order to grow I will need to get funding. To be honest that part still feels daunting. I like the comfort of growing in direct alignment with my sales, it feels safe but I know its not sustainable for the long term. Soon I will have to leave the comfort of my attic, let go of the control I have doing everything myself and take another risk.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jyttedesigns.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jyttedesigns/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jyttedesigns
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arjuna-durrant-a0706aa1/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUDnP7KQ8ew
Image Credits
Rachel Cuccia and Forest Hudes