Yume was established in Berlin but has an Asian soul. It was founded by Karsta and Leonard. Inspired by our many years living in Asia and by the warmth of the people, Yume has its roots in the love for our child, a longing for good rest and our appreciation of Asian textiles and comfortable, elegant stylishness. In our designs, we tried to blend these emotions with the artistic richness and sober aesthetic of Berlin, our home of the past few years.
Here we introduce some of the people in Thailand and Germany who have accompanied us on Yume’s long voyage from an idea, to reality.
THAILAND
Sewing
Working with Thai seamstresses means great craftsmanship and cheerfulness. All items are sewn in a long-established factory in a rural, mountainous region of Thailand. Between 40-60 women are employed there full-time, year-round with good working conditions and fair wages.
Embroidery
Delicate hand-embroidery is a centuries-old tradition in south-east Asia. The embroidery for Yume is done by individual women and men in several villages. They are usually rice farmers and do the stitching during their spare time. Being able to provide these women and men an opportunity to have some extra income is very meaningful.
Toys & Cushions
The charming rabbit toys and cushions are made by a small family-based village cooperative. That specializes in the production of small stuffed animals and toys to supplement the villager’s income.
Travel Bags
The travel bags for the blankets are sewn by trainee seamstress girls in a small Christian charity convent. The young women, mostly of Burmese hill-tribe origin, have fled poverty and violence. The charity aims to teach the sewing trade to the girls it hosts in order to equip them with skills through which they can generate long-term economic self-sustenance.
BERLIN
Stephan Dybus
Stephan, based in Berlin, is a graphic artist and illustrator who helped us create Yume's “rabbit-in-the-moon” logo. In addition, he gave life to the lovely rabbit “Yume” and other charming characters, creating charismatic visuals that you can find throughout the website and our products. A sampling of Stephan’s art is available at www.stephandybus.de.
Ester Cohen
Ester is a talented seamstress in Berlin. She strongly believed in our product from the start and helped us create the very first prototypes of our sleepwear, patiently experimented with fabrics and patterns. That early momentum with Ester gave us the impetus to develop the first Yume collection. More information about Ester‘s shop at www.cohmet.de.
