Given that everyone cares so much more about what they eat, and where it comes from, it stands to reason that we should care just as much about what we wear, and where our clothes come from. The Alpina Gstaad, the exquisite 56 room hotel nestled amongst 20 hectares of park land just above Gstaad Village, is a luxury destination which is proudly committed to sustainability, philanthropy and social ventures. It’s latest project, a collaboration with the lifestyle brand and social enterprise SEP Jordan, is another string to its bow which evidences the hotel’s commitment to support good causes.
A series of pop up shops will take place within the hotel, which recently re-opened, across four weekends in July and August thereby allowing guests to purchase from this luxury lifestyle brand with a social conscience.
SEP Jordan is a brand that aims to bring thousands of refugees above the poverty line through training, education and employment. It was founded in 2013 by Roberta Ventura, and the company is run from Geneva, Amman and the Jerash Refugee Camp. The brand celebrates the best of Middle Eastern craftsmanship and currently works with more than 500 artists and artisans in Jordan. These individuals create hand crafted items which will last a life time. Extraordinary care and expertise goes into the creation process of each and every item, for example one cashmere throw takes more than five weeks to construct.
SEP Jordan was initially inspired by a desire to introduce a brand which tells a myriad of unique stories, and therefore sets itself apart from ubiquitous high end fashion items which can be somewhat ‘copy and paste’. The pop up stores will stock a wide range of items including linen Alhambra shawls, Panama hats, tunic dresses, cashmere scarves and canvas bags.
Roberta Ventura commented “We work to ensure that the SEP artists are proud to be part of the SEP community. They are respected as individuals and each of them can express their personality in the creative process.”
The pop up dates are 10-11, 17-19 July, 31 July-2 August and 7-9 August, displayed in the main lobby of The Alpina Gstaad, from Friday to Sunday. The best selling pieces will later be developed into a special collection for the hotel.
