Derived from a Tamil word meaning “fusion”, INAIVU mixes African and Asian influences to create unique home decor and lifestyle accessories. Handcrafted in East Africa, INAIVU partners with local artisans providing access to a global marketplace. We celebrate the blending of cultures while providing exceptional customer service, adhering to fair trade standards and collaborating with various grass-roots initiatives to support under-served communities.
INAIVU’s story begins in Monrovia, Liberia where I was born and raised. My father, a Liberian native, and my mother, a Malaysian, collected beautiful handmade goods sold by local artisans.
As a child, I would often accompany my father to a small leather crafts shop downtown where he purchased leather shoes with silver-buckled belts to match, designed by himself and made to order. He would also purchase backpacks from this store for me and my siblings. How we dreaded carrying them to school! As you can imagine, the leather look was not exactly popular with our classmates.
My mother, a nurse by profession, enjoyed experimenting with textiles. She was always working on her craft, trading batik techniques with other artists in the area. Her batik making skill became essential to our family’s survival during the Liberian Civil War. When we were displaced, I travelled door to door selling her colorful batik bathroom mat sets to our new neighbours in Ghana. Sometimes, the earnings from her work were our only source of income.
I’ve understood firsthand the power that art has to transform both the lives of the creator and the receiver. My encounters with art defined my childhood and my later life as a social worker and public health specialist serving marginalized groups within the United States and East Africa. Artisan work continues to have economic importance among these groups.
Wanting to do more and discover new ways to give back, I created INAIVU to merge my work experiences with my vision to create a socially conscious luxury home décor and lifestyle brand that is committed to promoting stronger, healthier, and more productive communities.
At INAIVU, we use our business to change lives. We are committed to achieving the highest standards in responsible, sustainable, and ethical business practices. We focus on the well-being of our artisans as we strive to make a worldwide difference.
With every design, and through every collection, INAIVU will:
- Raise awareness about social and economic barriers impacting women and children across the African and Asian landscape.
- Support various causes, communities and individuals.
As INAIVU continues to grow, we will continue to examine more ways to get better, give better, and work better.
