Brands We Love: Mwayi
Mwayi is an ethical fashion brand launched this summer by Latina entrepreneur and Class of 2017 Wharton MBA graduate, Renata Aráuz-DeStefano.
Mwayi (pronounced Mwa-why-yee) provides made-to-measure womenswear. All items are handmade in Malawi. The company’s primary value proposition is customization: Mwayi empowers customers to choose the fabric/silhouette combination they want, and tailor each garment to their individual measurements.
Mwayi’s core goals for the next 18 months are:
- launch a Brand Ambassador Program at MBA programs across the country
- graduate their inaugural class of apprentices
- achieve profitability
Renata, Mwayi’s Founder/CEO, holds a Bachelor’s degree from Tufts University in International Relations & French. This past academic year, she completed her MBA at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania where she majored in Finance & Management. Speaking to MBA Mama about how her time at Wharton helped Mwayi develop, Renata says:
Being at Wharton was crucial to the progress I made with Mwayi over the past 12 months. More than anything, I was blown away by the support of countless classmates who took the time to help me with everything from survey or logo design to hosting focus groups and planning marketing events. I think one of the key value propositions of business school is the student body: I felt constantly surrounded by bright minds whose diverse perspectives challenged me and fostered my development, both as an entrepreneur and as a person.
In addition to my classmates, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the value of the Venture Initiation Program Community, the Penn Wharton Innovation Fund, and one of my favorite classes — Social Entrepreneurship — which allowed me to access resources and time to work on developing Mwayi!
Renata connected with MBA Mama’s summer intern, Kenalyn Ang, for a Q&A. Check out what Renata had to say about Mwayi below:
Where do you get your inspiration and ideas for patterns, prints, and design for each article of clothing?
From everywhere! It’s definitely a multi-step process that requires flexibility and an open-mind. At this stage, we’re purchasing all our fabrics from Zambia, where they’re imported from across the Continent. Because of our scale, our prints depend very much on supply. That being said, however, we seek a wide array of colors and prints in order to satisfy a broader consumer base. Final fabric selections are a joint effort between myself, that collection’s designer, and a few close friends who’ve been involved in Mwayi from day one.
In terms of designs, each Mwayi collection features unique silhouettes created especially for our brand by emerging female designers here in the U.S.
What is the biggest challenge in running the business?
The issue of quality control primarily comes down to standardization, and this has been challenging because in Malawi, tailors typically create one-off items, based on individual discussions with each customer. Once they create one piece, it is rare that they need to repeat it exactly. At Mwayi, however, while we customize to each woman’s measurements, we do have high standards when it comes to the uniformity of other aspects of a garment (think, for example, each hem being exactly 1” or each pocket always being the same length).
In order to underscore the importance of standardization, I’ve on-boarded a Production Manager, Temwa Msiska, whose primarily responsibility is quality control. We’ve also incorporated replication and standardization into our MAP classes and developed production manuals and tools to ensure that our tailors are fully equipped to meet our quality standards.
Tell us a little about your partnerships, and how you collaborate with different designers.
Designer collaborations represent a core aspect of Mwayi’s brand. With our apprentices, our customers, and our designers, we aim to empower and inspire women! Through our designer partnerships, we seek to provide a mutually beneficial platform where emerging female designers can see their sketches come to life, while also helping to provide livable wages to equally hardworking women in Malawi. To this end, each Mwayi collection features a new designer who supports our mission and whose style reflects the bold, confident individuality of Mwayi customers.
The team at MBA Mama is honored to promote Mwayi as one of the brands we love. Shop Mwayi’s latest collection online now — They offer a 3-step check-out process: first, choose your favorite silhouette; second, select the print in which you would like your silhouette; third, submit your measurements. They even have a handy instructional video to walk you through the measurement process. AND! The MBA Mama family gets a discount! Use the code MBAMAMA17 for 15% off your order through Oct 31st.
