,n ,0.

!t

ftho /corn Thong

#n$p)etssiotfText and

by DonWannida

Banokok- a

l , - . . - - -

1a4'ml#il*i;i*iil:produc ts en te rp r i se in Baan NaPho vi l lage in Buriram Province,Saengduean' C^hannuan (Khun Pui)demurs. She doesn't consider PhaToom Thong her success, despi teannual exports of about 35 millionbaht (US$1.17 mil l ion). Her success,she insists, is how much she has beenable to change and improve the livesof so many women and children wholive in Baan Na Pho.

It's a long and wonderful story.My wife, Lida, and I started ex-

porting Thai silk scarves a year agoafter a long search for manufacturerswhose reliability and quality controlwe could trust, and whose treatmentof their workers was fair. Most silkproducts in Thailand are producedby cottage industry, often by farm-ers between planting and harvesting

THAILAND PhotographsLinder and(Lida) firatha

Buriram \"-"""1-

seasons. In February 2009, while Iwas in the United States, Lida visitedKhun Pui , whose namecard we'dtaken at an OTOP (One Tambon,One Product) fair in 2008. This gov-ernment program promotes locallymade products in each distr ict ofthe country. After her visit, Lida e-mailed me stories and photos of whatshe called a "wonderful place."

The Pha Toom Thong weavers'collective isn't all that easy to find.Located in the Northeast in the vil-lage of Na Pho, its small nondescriptentrance is easy to miss. But, onceyou turn into the gate, you've entereda wonderland. You pass by basketsfull of cocoons, their larvae clicking,and large masses of newly spun silk,hung to dry, unti l you are facinga statue and mini-shrine to KhunPui 's grandfather, the col lect ive'snamesake. To the side, several airy,covered work areas hum with looms,

spinning wheels and chatter. Beauti-fully landscaped gardens, waterwaysand paths surround a number ofsmall stone and glass buildings. Forpractical reasons, some might cal lthis a silk "factory," but the over-whelming feeling is of communityand family.

Baan Na Pho is a typical rural vil-lage. Most villagers are rice farmers,

36 $tw,<onrlst Quarter 20ll

well as pedal loomsWeavers work on hand looms asin the large, open-air workshop.

In addition to exquisite textures and designs,the color palette of Pha Toom Thong silks is a

visual treat.

and few venture outside its tranquil-ity. Khun Pui did. She studied in theseaside province of Chonburi to be ateacher, then for two years worked inChonburi and Bangkok as a designer.In her words, "Every day was morn-ing go for work, evening go backhome. I felt bored and wonderedwhy I wasn't doing something moremeaningfull' She returned home with

BeautifuIly landscaped gardens, waterways and pathsadd a feel of nature to the collective's stone and glassstructures.

the intention of becoming a teacher,but in those days, one had to paybig bribes to become a teacher, andKhun Pui did not feel that was in theservice of her community, where shehad deep roots.

Her grandfather, Pha Toom Thong,had been the v i l lage headman, aweaving teacher and a progressivethinker dedicated to social develop-

ment, who started the first weavingschool in what was then Siam. Healso started a silk-weaving businessbut was not successful because atthat time the market.was not strongnor, as Khun Pui admits, was he agood marketer.

As fate would have it, in 1973, adelegation from Her Majesty QueenSir iki t came to neighboring Put-tathaisong district to make merit.A terrible draught was threateningsurvival, and conditions promptedanother delegation to visit in 1975

$wenorlst Quarter 20ll 37

Pha Toom Thong collection of100o/o silk scarves displays a wide

range of designs, textures, sizesand colors.

Women who are physicallyunable to manipulate footpedal looms may do handweaving, spinning or dyeing.

to assess how to help the people.Pha Toom Thong took his daugh-ter , Khun Pra juab, a wel l - t rustedleader among the village women, tospeak with the group. Thus began along-standing relationship with theQueen's pro jects , which inc ludedKhun Prajuab accompanying QueenSir ik i t to Washington, D.C. for aspecial exhibit ion promoting Thaisi lk in 1991.

Drawing on her fami ly va lues,Khun Pui closely studied her com-munity to determine how she couldserve i t best. She found there weremany d i f fe ren t l eve ls o f ab i l i t yamong the vi l lagers and that mostlived by agricultural cycles with veryfew non-agricultural opportunit iesto suppor t themselves. Insecur i tywas high. Fortunately, she discoveredthat their casual sideline; silk weav-ing, was becoming very popular andpotentially very profitable for theircommunity and for the nation. Sherealtzed that this "sideline" could bea source of stability for individualsand the community as a whole.

In 1996, Khun Pui began by form-ing a small group of t6 weavers andtook their products to sel l at mar-ke ts and government -sponsored

exhibit ions. Although things weregoing wel l , she soon real ized thatthis strategy was advantageous onlyfor those with the best handcraft-ing ski l ls. The imbalance betweenthe key producers and the otherscou ld no t suppor t the long- te rmsustainable development needed tostrengthen the entire community.

Based on her working experienceoutside Baan Na Pho, Khun Pui madea p lan to apply profess ional -s ty lemanagement in ways that would notabuse culture or tradit ion or favorone group over another. She analyzed

each member's individual strengthsand weaknesses, recognizing thateach person had a unique potentialand ability to create an outstandingproduct in her own way. She knewthat encouraging people to creategood products would lead to prideand enthusiasm in their work and tomore skills development. By creatingthis posit ive and support ive cycle,she was able to ensure continuousand systematic distr ibution in themarketp lace, which led to consis-tent income for all members of thecollective.

Khun Pui and Lida examine a scarf.

38 $twennelst Quarter 20tI

Khun Sombot, a deaf man who hasbeen the groundskriprr, caretaker andbuilder for many years.

Weavers, and sometimes designers, work side-by-side incomfortable surroundings at the pha Toom Thong workshop.

One of several stone and glass bungalows built by KhunSombot for out-of- town customers.

To further enhance the good ofthe whole community, Khun Pui setthe specific criterion for recruitingmembers that they be "underprivi-leged or unprofitable for urban labormarkets." Members may be handi-capped, e lder ly , poor , orphaned,abused, ex-convicts or ill, some evenHIV posi t ive. This not only g ivesmeaning and hope to those whoselives might otherwise be poor anddepressed but also contr ibutes sub-stant ia l income to the local com-munity and to the country.

Today Baan Na Pho, the Weavers'Collective, consists of 783 members,including the 112 women and 8 menwho have worked there regularly, onaverage for more than ten years. Oneof the men, Khun Sombot, is deaf,and for many years has served asPha Toom Thong's groundskeeperand caretaker . He is a lso the oneKhun Pu i en t rus ted to cons t ruc tthe several buildings which dot theproperty.

In addition to the weaving areas,there are four del ight fu l ly deco-rated stone bungalows where visit-

$wznnt-lst Quarter 20tt 39

The market in Baanvariety offresh andproducts.

Na Pho bustles daily with a wideprepared foods and some local

As you enter the compound, huge batches ofraw spun and dyed silk catch the eye.

ing customers can stay, an office, ashowroom and the family residence.There are plans for more bungalowsand a la rger s t ruc tu re to accom-modate the groups of students whoregularly visit for lectures from KhunPui followed by firsthand observa-tion of the many processes that takeplace there.

And many processes there are-from raising the silk worms to spin-ning and drying the si lk to dyeingthe silk and, finally, to weaving thef in ished products, which inc ludea wide array of scarves, tableware,

handbags, clothes and fabric bolts-a l l in e legant and unique designs.Khun Pui is the primary designer,and al l col lect ive members are en-couraged to come up with their owndesigns, many of which are in te-grated in to the main co l lect ions.Khun Pui's eleven-year-old daughter,Mudmee, is learning design, and hernine-year-old son, Fume, is not yetinvolved.

As Lida and I watched the weav-

Weaver at the loom manipulatesthe traditional foot pedals.

Skeins of spun raw silk await dyeingand weaving.

i ng , spoke w i th severa l sh i f t s o fworkers and wa lked a round thetown's daily market, we were struckby what a wonderful world KhunPui has created in Baan Na Pho. Wesaw women arrive for work lookinggenuinely happy and inv igoratedto be there. We watched as thei rchildren played and did homework.What we couldn't see in our briefvisit is what Khun Pui can observeday after day, month after month,

40 $tuzoot- lst Quarter 201I

The Pha Toom Thongshowroom displays adazzling array of silk

products includingsczrves, tableware,

bolts of silk, clothing,handbags and more.

Trays of cocoons with live larvae click andhum on the grounds of the workshop.

A statue and shrine

for the weavers'collective's namesakeand Khun Pui'sgrandfather, PhaToom Thong, is thecenterpiece of thegrounds.

year after year-the fact that risingfrom poverty and depression, thesewomen, her community, can nowsupport themselves and make brightfutures ftir their children, some ofwhom have already become doctors,teachers and civil servants. Khun Puiis undoubtedly an astute business-woman and international promoterof Thai si lk, but she continues todefine her real success as enablingthe women of Baan Na Pho to createlives of fulfillment. {.

N o t t o b e m i s s e d a r e t h e e x -quisite products from Pha ToomThong , wh ich w i l l soon have awebsite. In the meantime, you cansee and buy their products at suchplaces as Paragon and Emporium inBangkok or at OTOP exhibit ions.You can also visit Baan Na Pho, bycal l ing 044-686-044, or e-mail ingphatoomthong@gmail.com. ,

D o n L i n d e r i s a w r i t e r , e d i t o r ,photographer and educator from NewYork City. He came to Thailand in2001 as Academic 'Di rector of theAmerican University Alumni (AUA)Language Center. He can be contactedat donlinder@gmail. com.

Wannida (Lida) liratha is from NAn,in northern Thailand. Their company,Talat Thai, www.TalatThai.com, ex-ports Thai silk products worldwide.

$wannt-lst Quarter 2011 4l