The Colombian MAZ brand, founded in 2013 by designer Manuela Álvarez, has proven itself as a leading name in Latin American fashion. What started as a tailoring, evolved into a creative adventure with emphasis on traditional traditional techniques. MAZ renewed regional fashion and reinforced Colombian communities. Now the brand is known for modern luxury, it is internationally active and in March 2025 it launched a craftsmanship-oriented collaboration with Adidas.
About Manuela Álvarez (MAZ)
After her four -year study at design school Istituto Marangoni in Milan, Álvarez came up with the idea of starting her own brand. After a period at the Colombian textile company Lafayette, she focused on her personal project. “I was always curious about what it means to be Latin American, Colombian. At that time there was that great revival of the ‘Tropical Chic’, that tropical exuberance that comes from the coasts of Colombia,” remembers in conversation with FashionUnited.
“My family and I, however, come from Bogota (the capital of Colombia, ed.), Where it is cold and you wear black, several layers over each other. I did not understand how fashion could be seen differently. I still believe that there is a lot of room for Latin American fashion that does not come from the tropics,” says Álvarez. For example, the designer started her own brand, which is based on tailoring, the exploration of anatomical architecture and Japanese clothing, “but above all I was very curious about exploring artisan textile techniques.
The way of the craft
Two years later, Álvarez won the ‘Maestros Ancestrales’ design competition. “Various designers were allowed to collaborate with local communities in one of the most beautiful, but also heavily affected regions of Colombia: Chocó,” says Álvarez. “An area that is not only known for its nature, but also for its history of violence and long -term political and social neglect.”
The designer says that this was a turning point in her career. Such a big change took place there that she even completely changed her business model. “I decided to switch to a model that is really sustainable, ethically conscious and culturally effective. That was ten years ago. We immediately started cooperation with communities, and today 90 percent of our textile and clothing development is processed or fully manufactured by indigenous communities, both traditional and traditional.”
“We are more than just a brand, we are a textile studio, because 90 percent of the textile basis with which we work is made by ourselves by our craft teams. It was a beautiful road that today helped us with very important figures for an independent brand,” she explains.
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In ten years, with its brand, Álvarez has influenced the lives of more than 850 families in seven regions of Colombia; 90 percent of them are led by single women who work with more than 15 traditional techniques. “We hebben twee zeer belangrijke dingen voortgebracht: het duurzame werk in de loop van de tijd met de kunstenaars waarmee we zijn begonnen, en een structuur die we het holistische, duurzame 360-gradenmodel van Manuela Álvarez noemen. Het is een proces en een leidraad voor nieuwe generaties, nieuwe ontwerpers of zelfs voor reeds gevestigde bedrijven. Het is een routekaart, hoe wij na zoveel jaar werken in de gemeenschap van mening zijn dat er ethisch, aantoonbaar, Sustainable, honest and respectful work must be done, “says Álvarez.
The brand works with two collections and some capsule collections per year. “We focus on the seasons, we are still a company and have to move where other companies are moving, those are the markets, those are the autumn/winter and spring/summer seasons,” says Álvarez.
MAZ has a flagship store in Bogotá and also distributes its products in multi -market shops in other cities in Colombia, including Cartagena, Cali and Medellín. Internationally it is present in Italy, Mexico and the United States, and there is also a webshop that supplies worldwide.
“It was complicated to convey the people abroad, the context and the core of the brand, because it represents the new sustainable luxury. They often do not understand the costs, because they are of course high, because there is so much craftsmanship and craftsmanship. It was often difficult to gain a foothold on the international market, but we also found very good clients that the concept of the concept of another bit of a bit of a little bit fashion consumption, “says Álvarez.
UN recognizes MAZ as an example of sustainable fashion
In 2024, Álvarez was the first Latin American and Colombian designer who was invited to talk about her sustainable processes in the UN headquarters in New York. “I wanted to show that there is Latin American fashion that can work with another, demonstrable and culturally conscious business model. This has led us to projects such as Adidas by MAZ that influence the current fashion system,” says Álvarez. “The model works because it is expansive and the structure is strong enough to be repeated in other creative industries,” she adds.
Traditional networks: the sustainable approach of MAZ in Colombia
The company has combined its sustainability structure with a textile and traditional quality, with an extremely universal, contemporary and relevant vision, which is also mixed with a very timeless aesthetics.
In the course of the past decade, MAZ has specialized in various areas. The most important ‘artisan networks’ with training, the preparation of a register of the available artists and a price system in accordance with the communities involved.
When MAZ works together with a community of artists for the first time, the brand always starts with a promise for sustainable work. “We do something that we call ‘traditional networks’, one of our five pillars within the sustainable, holistic model of MAZ. We set up a traditional or creative laboratory, where we train artists in new techniques and teach them a creation structure,” says álvarez.
MAZ also has a register of all artists who are accessible via the website. This contains information and contact details of the artists who work for MAZ. “We have a database to show that we have checked their quality. This makes it easier for people to find these craftsmen,” explains Álvarez.
To praise the traditional work, Álvarez consults with the craft leader of the region. The price amount is determined for the participants in the project, with the possibility to increase this to 20 percent.
Maz and Adidas launch ‘Raíz de Fénix’, collection inspired by Colombian women
‘Raíz de Fénix’ (Wortel van de Feniks in Dutch, ed.) Is the name of the collaboration that MAZ developed at the beginning of this year with Adidas Originals. It is a collection that calls for transformation, to victory and resilience, inspired by the Colombian woman and the myth of the phoenix. The collection connects the urban style of the German sports brand with traditional Colombian and native traditional techniques.
“When they called me, there were several designers in the race for the assignment, but in the end they chose Maz. They appreciated our universal refinement and the contemporary application of traditional techniques. They also found our honest theme attractive and that we had structured everything well. This project confirmed our power as a sustainable brand, who does not produce our own, uses in Colombia” Álvarez.
The process was really challenging: “We have convened the people, with whom we have collaborated in the past ten years and techniques such as Macramé, embroidery, beaded border, manually knitting and weaving brought together. They have applied the complete traditional process, but in a adidas version, to get the best from the two Estarez and álv.
It is clear that MAZ shows that fashion can be both sustainable and socially involved. By working together with artists and integrating traditional techniques into modern designs, the brand has positioned itself as a leading player in Latin American fashion. MAZ has put the cultural wealth of Colombia on the international map
This article was previously published on FashionUnited.es and was used with the help of digital tools translated.
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