Behind the Seams in Marrakech | RES IPSA

Marrakech, Morocco — Off-season travel has brought us back to Morocco after a long hiatus.  Returning to some of our favorite smells, sounds, and people has been a great reminder of why we started Res Ipsa and what it means to us.  We’ve spent the last month perfecting our ‘zero waste’ production process, discovering new inspirations, and reconnecting with the team behind the seams in Marrakech.  No matter how familiar we become with this incredible city, we can’t help but get lost in its colorful shuffle every visit. Read on for the full Moroccan trip update! As a bonus read, we made a shortlist highlighting a few of the most magical places to eat, drink, and enjoy dessert in Marrakech.

As we continue to evolve the brand into different facets, our goal of ‘zero waste’ has remained the same.  Every day we work towards changing the current model of fashion production- which yields an extraordinary amount of waste in the name of large-scale production.  Most brands make more than they need, which is why they have to dump their inventory through sales. We make only what we need, which is why we don't have sales.  We are weaving our own fabrics, and just enough to meet our needs so we don't have excess.  Our signature boucherouite rugs are a perfect example of this process- each rug is made from fabric (wool, nylon, and plastics) remnants and clippings. 

Res Ipsa Boucherouite Rugs 

While it is easy to just play our hits and focus on what has worked, the feeling of being lost and found in Marrakech is what inspires us to go down different avenues in retail.  Over the last couple years we have fallen in love with the Moroccan style of decor and homeware.  We started dreaming about bringing this style to the US and shaking up the status quo for luxury home goods.  We were thrilled to announce the opening of our first Res Ipsa Home store in Aspen this last summer. 

We have spent a lot of time this last month focusing on new home goods for the upcoming season. Similar to our clothing, each piece of furniture was handcrafted with the goal of zero waste. 

One of our favorite aspects of our Marrakech trips has to be the time we spend with our production and design team.  While hours of Facetime calls and hundreds of pictures sent back and forth allow us to operate the factory year round, spending quality time with the team that brings our ideas to life is what we live for. 

After hearing about our teams’ travels this summer, we were inspired to take a weekend trip to the ancient coastal port of Essaouira (formerly known as Mogador).  To tie things together full-circle, our first tie collection featured an eponymous special silk weave known as mogador that originated here.  Little did we know that it would be an inspiration for new products ten years later.  This brand has a funny way of showing us how important and sustainable our initial visions continue to be.

We cannot wait to get our wheels in motion for the upcoming season.  New shipments with love from Marrakech are currently en route to all 6 of our stores. Stop by and see what we’ve been up to.  As-salaam Alaykum

 

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