Passion Lilie’s 2022 Year in Review

We sponsored another woman for our job training program

Poonguzhali Subramaniyan, who goes by Jayanthi, is 29 years old and from Tamil Nadu. She learned to sew on basic machines with minimal instruction and aspires to pursue tailoring as a career. As the 2022 trainee, she received three months of free job training, a salary, a loaned sewing machine and free space to work in our partner's sewing unit. 

Jayanthi learned valuable advanced sewing skills on a variety of garments and fabrics, allowing her to become a skilled tailor and receive an increase in salary.

Upon completion of the program, each trainee is offered a job at our Partner's Unit. During the training program the participants do not work on Passion Lilie garments and if they do not wish to complete the program, they have no obligation to do so. 

Jayanthi has thrived in the training program. The experience she’s garnered has given her the opportunity to buy a sewing machine and work from home, where she will have the flexibility to work and care for her four year old son. 

When you shop at Passion Lilie, you help build a more equitable workplace for people around the world. Long-term, sustainable change is more than just paying fair wages. Our business model provides artisans with opportunities to enrich their skills and empowers them to achieve higher goals. 

You can read more about Jayanthi’s experience and our job training program here. We hope to introduce you to a new trainee in 2023!

We opened a new storefront at 831 Chartres Street

The absolute wonder of holding space in New Orleans’ historic French Quarter is not lost on us. The people we meet each day – locals and visitors alike – share their stories with us amidst the scents of local soaps and candles, beautiful clothes, and jewelry. Passion Lilie’s partnership with Beatrix Bell has been but a dream for many years, and bringing it to fruition has been better than either of us imagined. Our shop truly has something for everyone – fine art, meaningful jewelry, handmade clothing, soaps, lotions, and candles that are carefully crafted by artisans near and far. Each purchase serves people in our global community – from providing jobs for women survivors of exploitation in Nashville to supporting fair wage jobs in India. 

We are constantly in awe of the people who walk into our shop. People from different corners of the world with the same heart for others. People with vastly different styles, bodies, and experiences who find clothes that fit them perfectly and jewelry they can’t wait to share with loved ones.

We have exciting things in the works for our beautiful space in 2023! We can’t wait to welcome our community in for workshops like sewing, crafting (think Mardi Gras costuming workshop), mending and block printing. If any of these sound interesting to you, or if you just want to be a part of a great community, sign up for our newsletter to stay in the know.

We increased our order size

Due to higher demand for Passion Lilie products (thank you!) we were able to increase our average order size with our partner groups in India by 25%. This means more fair trade jobs, which is especially important when many businesses and individuals are still struggling in India post-Covid. Your support for Passion Lilie is helping people earn fair, living wages to support their families.

We offered new products

If the past few years have taught us anything, it’s that home should be comfortable and beautiful. Whether it’s time to work from home or throw on Netflix, our new blankets are an absolute must have. They’re made of beautiful, hand woven cotton, and they’re a medium weight that’s perfect for any season. The soft colors and tassels on both ends make this throw easy to pair with your existing home decor. 

We also expanded our zero waste products to include more bags and re-usable items. Our stunning cloth napkins, for example, are perfect for making dinner a little more special and eco-friendly! Made from leftover scrap fabrics from production, these cloth napkins help us reach our mission of being a zero-waste company. 

Another new no-waste product we offered this year is super soft organic cotton makeup rounds. Created from leftover production fabrics, they can be used to remove makeup and for daily skincare and facial cleanings. Each pad is two layers, comes in a pack of 10 and uses only our softest organic cotton. They’re washable for use time and time again. 

We hope to keep expanding our zero-waste line in 2023; if there’s anything you want to see, please let us know!

We’re also planning to expand our menswear line to include shorts this year! We’ve got some comfortable and stylish drawstring shorts in the works for spring 2023. With a longer inseam, these shorts will also make a great genderless garment.

Passion Lilie is currently in the sampling stage for some beautiful new prints that will be available soon. Our spring 2022 best seller was the Kai Dress, and we learned that we need to offer more floral options. This season, be on the lookout for some lovely modern and retro floral prints that will be both block printed and screen printed. We can’t wait for you to see what we’ve got in store for this year!

2022 was a big year for Passion Lilie, and we expect 2023 to bring even more community, joy, opportunity, and partnership. Thank you for your support this year, and for being with us as we usher in a new one.

With deepest gratitude,
Your friends at Passion Lilie