Waytita

Waytita - Yauli, Huancavelica
Alberto Quispe Acuņa, Hilda Boza Ccanto, Santiago Quispe Acuņa, Albina Boza Malyhua, Orlando Quispe Boza, Leon Quispe Acuņa, Eusebia Laurente Boza, Teodoro Quispe Acuņa

Members of Grupo Waytita are from the Matipacana area of Yauli. These artisans are adapting traditional skills to modern products. For example, they make a beautiful purse which is trimmed with a hand-made slingshot. They make fajas (the traditional wide belt that men wear) into Nalgeen water bottle carriers. Their traditional dance costumes have incredible bead and sequins hand-sewn to them. Waytita now puts the beads and sequins onto hand-sewn evening bags. Their unique products are a bridge between traditional and modern life.

For generations the Quispe family in Matipacana was known as a source for quality traditional clothing, both embroidered skirts and aprons. Twenty years ago one of the Quispe brothers moved to Yauli, the largest town in the area, to expand their market of selling the traditional clothes his family produced. In the last few years the family is seeing the market for traditional clothing dwindle. It is now much more expensive to wear the beautiful hand-embroidered skirt (with its many underskirts) and apron than western clothing. The family knew their business would not survive another generation.

ATIYPAQ, a member institution of the Joining Hands Peru Network, works in the Matipacana area and has long known the respected Quispe family. Because ATIYPAQ cares deeply in preserving traditional skills, clothing and textiles, they introduced Grupo Waytita to the Bridge of Hope Fair Trade project. Grupo Waytita has had no difficulty in adopting the standards of Fair Trade as they have always operated in a transparent manner, and have long been involved in community service in their own community.

Grupo Waytita has provided valuable knowledge to other artisan groups by sharing how to put finishing touches on products, bookkeeping, and letting others use their sewing machines.  They see the Fair Trade project as realigning their skills to the modern market, and giving them ways to incorporate traditional products so that fajas, slingshots, embroidery, and beadwork do not become a lost art.
Three years ago they had nearly given up hope and believed that each family member would have to go his own way.  Thanks to Fair Trade, they have renewed hope that their family business can continue. Alberto is the only member of Grupo Waytita who was able to complete high school. Now they believe that their sons and daughters will have the opportunity to finish high school.

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