Bedouin by Community

by Alice from Germany

LUMEYO focuses on the added value for communities and the preservation of cultural values and handicraft traditions. That’s why we visit the Bedouin women weekly to connect and discuss our work, plans and dreams. The weaving work allows the women to gather with purpose, to take care of their families and to envision a future for their daughters. Business isn’t about the ideas of the founder, it’s about the opportunities it creates.

In this sense, LUMEYO is not a conventional company, but a social entrepreneurship. Grown to the rhythm of the desert, over time, with a lot of patience. It all started fourteen years ago with an idea as a delicate seed. Today LUMEYO has grown to a stable community. LUMEYO lives through its connections. And LUMEYO is reinvented every day through new connections, partners and beautiful vibrant people around the world.

LUMEYO’s bedouin, nomadic life

Born in the desert of Jordan, LUMEYO has incorporated the ancient knowledge and wisdom of the Bedouins into its values. The wisdom of people who have been nomadic for centuries, moving from place to place and showing great faith by believing: “Nature provides us with everything we need. We must respect it because it is the basis of our life. We ourselves keep moving, seeking new places, adopting new perspectives and developing our skills, remembering our old knowledge and expanding our networks. As long as we stand with this trust we will be fine.”

LUMEYO as a community

LUMEYO takes up this old Bedouin attitude. 14 years ago we had the inspiration to create bags and with an investment of just 50 JOD we started working like equal partners. The women brought in their weaving tradition and we brought product design, branding and promotion. During the process we learned the language and culture of the Bedouins. Respect for eachothers background resulted in a contstant learning and opening. Standard Western business processes where useful to give direction, yet the most important value was to connect from the heart; to appreciate their work, to give ideas and to support their entrepreneurship. An organic development that slowly resulted in a quality product that both the women and us are proud of…it is not just a bag, it is reviving tradition, it is sharing Bedouin tea, it is overcoming cultural challenges while keeping a clear eye on quality and customer wishes. In short, by reviving the traditional values by contributing business principles we created the first social business in Southern Jordan.

It doesnt just stop there, we are keen to share our experience with other communities in Jordan. We helped registering the weaving craft as a licensed education with the Ministry of Labour, we helped establishing new weaving communities and are continueing to establish partnerships to share the values of social community, creative entrepreneurship and economic empowerment through our learnings. We see the work of LUMEYO as a service to the community, a service that – like nomads – is in constant movement. Where we stay we are present and adapt in ways so the creative lifeforce can flow.

Another value is hospitality, to be open to new encounters and to hold out our hands in greeting because we love to learn from each other. Real creativity is meeting eachother at the fire and share stories. We know deep down in our LUMEYO roots that everything is based on community and that with LUMEYO we are creating a vibrant, lively community – a community inspired by the nomadic life of the Bedouins: sustainable, authentic and based on partnership.

Challenges of nomadic life

From our experience we know that nomadic life is no picnic. Courage is required in the vastness of the Jordanian desert. Courage to go ahead. But also the courage to stop, to redirect and to deal with conflicts. Then you also need persistence. Consistency, sticking with it, building relationships and gaining trust. A journey without end. A nomadic life, indeed.

Nomadic life today

Is that the opportunity of modern life? With a focus on relationships rather than on returns, with a focus on processes rather than on expected outcomes, with partnerships based on shared interests rather than contracts, with moving spaces and times what do you mean with this? (different places to work, not one office, no fixed working hours, work is more woven into life, thus more flexible, natural, flowing) rather than fixed in one space and time?

Our LUMEYO products are nomads

Our Bedouin LUMEYO products set an example for us as you can see on Instagram. They are eager to get out into the world themselves, to places where they spread joy, make everyday life easier and colorful – they want to contribute to a sustainable community – because the nomadic life of the Bedouins is woven into every LUMEYO rug, hand-finished into every LUMEYO bag and revived into every LUMEYO pillow cover.

Let’s pick up these Bedouin vibes together!