”We help our customers to collect happy moments” New Campaign from COSMO
About Cosmo
“I have never had the feeling that because I am a woman, I can’t do something” — Co-founder and Director of COSMO, Sophie Mukhulishvili.
“Cosmo” is Georgia’s most diverse handmade accessories factory. Today, the colorful and unique accessories of “Cosmo” are presented in 7 branches. They can also be found on the international market — on the handmade and vintage items platform “Etsy” and in the Netherlands and Germany.
“We are adventure seekers, we strive with innovations and are always thinking to create something new and at the same time exceed the expectations of our customers,” says Sofi Mukhulishvili. It should be noted that consumers and partners (manufacturers of wood or leather) make a small but significant contribution to the creation of each product,
which makes “Cosmo” so special. The main designer, Tamuna Kvirikadze, combines all these ideas and creates designs
that have repeatedly given happiness to people and have remained in their lives’ memories with color, joy and love.
Cosmo currently produces up to 70 types of products. These include genuine leather handbags, wallets and bands, natural wood rings, recycled wood earrings, ribbons, necklaces, cup holders, brooches, bookmarks and rings, diaries, various metal necklaces, earrings, bracelets, brooches, and more.
Each product is unique and designed for adventure seekers, dreamers, and curious people.
Waist Bags
World’s Ancient Fashion Trend
Probably the oldest fashion trend in the world first appeared about 5000 years ago — The Ice Man’s tomb was found in the Alps, somewhere between Germany and Austria. In the fossil, among other items, was found a waist bag made of calfskin, which, presumably, would have been his faithful assistant even in very dangerous situations. Later, Egyptians, Scots, and English knights also actively used waist bags during their travels, and in the early 80s, this accessory took on a more modern form
as we know it today. Colorful nylon handbags due to their practicality soon became popular among tourists, hippies, skaters, and everyone, who lead an active lifestyle.
Among them are women traders, for whom handbags are an integral part of everyday life and a faithful companion.
Chokh’cha
Reinventing the National Icon As a Daily Accessory
Background
Chokha is a traditional male dress worn all over the Caucasus region. Through many centuries it has become a symbol of Georgian national identity, but it has lost its daily function and fashion momentum among younger audiences. Today chokhas are priced high and are only reserved for special occasions — as a folk dance costume or formal attire during weddings, diplomatic meetings, and public gatherings.
Tradition + Utility
With a vision to make national identity a relevant part of everyday life for young people again, our design team decided to create the most popular modern accessory with a very Georgian twist. Incorporating the iconic cartridge holders (originally designed to carry bullets or gunpowder) into a comfortable waist bag with multiple pockets, Chokh’cha is named after the original.
Adding a useful function to the traditional form has helped bring the iconic national costume to the most unexpected places — ordinary coffee shops, bars, dance floors, supermarkets, universities, and celebrities’ closets. The first
batch was immediately sold out without any additional promotion. Chokh’chas come in many different colorways and materials, making the waist bag even more appealing and accessible to wider audiences.
About Women
International Women’s Day is celebrated annually around the world in March and showcases the social, cultural, economic, and political achievements of women. This day also calls on the public to take action to establish gender equality in the world.
In honor of International Women’s Day, we have collected unique stories of trader women, which are imbued with individual pain, joy, frustration, aspirations, dreams, or achievements — feelings that are largely obscured and ignored in the masculine-dominant culture.
In a patriarchal society the voices of non-privileged women are not listened to, moreover, a great majority of women believe, that their voices should not be heard either. In this regard, we encountered many obstacles during the project implementing process. Husbands and sons of selected trader women contacted a night before the photoshoot and barred us from collaborating with their mothers and wives with unbridled aggression.
Perhaps, the time will come, when Women’s Day will cease to exist because one day it will be our every day and women will no longer need to prove their strength to others.
Meet 6 brave women traders, from whom you may have bought your groceries someday or other.
International Women’s Day is celebrated annually around the world in March and showcases the social, cultural, economic, and political achievements of women. This day also calls on the public to take action to establish gender equality in the world.
In honor of International Women’s Day, we have collected unique stories of trader women, which are imbued with individual pain, joy, frustration, aspirations, dreams, or achievements — feelings that are largely obscured and ignored in the masculine-dominant culture.
In a patriarchal society the voices of non-privileged women are not listened to, moreover, a great majority of women believe, that their voices should not be heard either. In this regard, we encountered many obstacles during the project implementing process. Husbands and sons of selected trader women contacted a night before the photoshoot and barred us from collaborating with their mothers and wives with unbridled aggression.
Perhaps, the time will come, when Women’s Day will cease to exist because one day it will be our every day and women will no longer need to prove their strength to others.
Meet 6 brave women traders, from whom you may have bought your groceries someday or other.
Tell us about your business.
It has been 12 years since I have had a cheese stall in Dezerter Bazar. I am there every day from 9 am to 8 pm.
What do you enjoy wearing the most? Due to my lifestyle, I love when I combine beauty and practicality. I also enjoy wearing big shiny earrings.
Which color do you love the most?
-I love all colors, but I love dark green and black especially.
Do you have a favorite accessory, that you wear every day?
-Yes, I have a bag made of silver glitter gems that I take with me every day.
Without what you could not leave the house?
-I always carry cosmetics in my bag, because I always try to look and feel good, wherever I am.
How much time do you spend on self- care?
-I wake up at 9 a.m. every day and spend about 1 hour for self-care and makeup before I leave the house.
Can you remember what kind of dress you wore to the wedding?
-I wore a white, puffy, corset dress to the wedding, I did not like it at all, because we ordered it and it did not turn out as expected.
Who gives you the biggest strength and motivation?
-I am my motivation and try to be in a good shape and look pretty every day because I enjoy it a lot when I receive compliments.
What advice would you give to other women?
-I would tell them to always take care of themselves and try to look beautiful.
“Before starting my clothing business, I studied and lived in Lithuania, where I also worked as a model, I had signed contracts with various agencies, I also worked for Swiss agencies as well. I once took 3rd place in a beauty contest. Then I got married and had to give up my career. I now have 2 children and 3 grandchildren.” — Sara tells us about her past life.
How would you describe your style?
I like the bohemian style, for me, it is free, practical, and very beautiful also.What do you enjoy wearing the most?
Do you have a favorite color?
I love almost all colors, but it depends on my mood. I like black and white particularly, I also like dark green very much.
Favorite brand?
I love collections of “Victoria’s Secret”.
“I lived in Moscow for about 25 years with my husband, we had our own small flower business, and lived very happily. My husband kidnapped me when I was in the 9th grade- I was returning home from school and he took me. He was 1 year younger than me. I had a life like in a fairy tale, a life everyone would dream about. One day my husband died
in an accident. I could not live in Moscow any longer and returned to Georgia. When I arrived, I started working in a restaurant in
Mtskheta, and now I sell fruits in the Dezerter Bazaar.”- Marina Motsonelidze.
How important are style and fashion in your life?
Style is the most important thing in my life. In my opinion, every person has to dress nicely. For example, if I am wearing a dress, I must wear a suitable clutch and shoes to that dress. I have a lot of clothes in my closet.
What about your favorite color?
My favorite color is red. I like green, too. I think these colors suit me the most.
Can you recall an accessory or outfit associated with the best and/or strongest memories?
My husband bought me a $ 6,000 so-called “diamond Norka fur coat”, which I have had all my life and will probably be buried with it.
An accessory without which you can not leave the house
…
(Pulls out a large silver cross and shows it to us) Here, I can not leave the house without this. It is a gift from my husband and I will carry it with me when I rejoin him.
What does your favorite bag look like?
I have a red glossy bag, which is very dear to me.
How much time do you spend on self-care?
Ah, since I started trading, I have had no time for these kinds of things. When I leave the house at 9 a.m., I come back at 8 o’clock. So for now I have given up on showing off, but when I lived in Moscow, I spent a lot of time taking care of myself. I loved wearing makeup and red lipstick.
Who or what motivates you the most?
I have only my niece Matthew and his two daughters, who are my soul and heart. I do not wish to live without them even for a day. They are everything to me. They now live in Spain and send gifts to me every 10 days.
What do you dream about?
First of all, I dream of health, as I have diabetes. I was in a coma for 10 days, no one knew if I would get out of it. I have seen a lot of things “there”. I care about nothing but my health and the well-being of Matthew and his children.
What would you advise other women?
Every woman should know that she is a woman; Every woman should first value herself and then respect others. It is most important to have a beautiful heart and if so, you will be beautiful. I wish all women health, long life, beauty, and all the best.
Who is the strongest woman in your life? The strongest woman for me is my grandmother, I consider her the most powerful person I have ever met. My grandmother has had her spice factory for 45 years, which supplies half of Georgia and also European countries. She leads this business almost independently.
Are you involved in this business as well? Yes, I help my grandmother with selling her product. I work about 10 hours a day, 7 days a week. However, I try not to forget who I am and take care of myself, and spend time with my children.
How important is a style in your life?
I prefer tasteful and quality clothes. For instance, I am wearing a Marco Polo leather jacket at the moment.
Which color do you like the most?
I like green — it is my color and it suits me.
What kind of clothes make you feel confident?
Hmm, I would pick out evening dresses. There are many such in my wardrobe. However, because of the pandemic, I am not able to go out, so I haven’t worn them for a long time.
Accessory, that you wear every day…
I do not leave the house without natural stones, my star sign is Scorpio and I wear stones corresponding to this sign.
Who or what gives you the greatest strength?
The greatest strength for me is my children, for whom I will always live and fight. Quite intensive and stressful times have passed, however, when I realize that I am doing all this for my children, I make many compromises and step over my principles.
What does motherhood mean to you?
Probably the greatest happiness for a woman is the experience of motherhood. I do not know what can bring you greater joy. I spare no effort for the happiness and success of my children.
What do you dream about?
I dream about my children’s happiness and success. Other than that, I think I have fulfilled all my childhood wishes.
What advice would you give to other women?
I would tell all women to never give up and fight for their happiness and progress. It’s not worth shedding tears and giving up on anything because of anyone. They should try their best to be happy. Of course, this is not easy, but I think if you are strong and stable, you will be able to do all this and break the stereotypes that exist about women.
I consider myself an independent woman because I do not rely on anyone and I always solve all my problems by myself. I think I manage to take up a role of a man as well. Us, Women can do everything.
“He turned out to be worthless, why would I need him. I returned to Tbilisi, I have a big family here and have not seen my ex-husband since then.“
Waist bags have always been associated with the bazaars for me because I often saw them in the outfits of traders and therefore I always liked this accessory very much.
I think this project was especially interesting because we did not work with professional models, as is often the case — we chose models, not from the agency websites, but fairs. These people have never had a connection with this field, it was
a bit unusual at first and they even had a feeling of distrust. The project was quite interesting for me, because the more complex the topic, the more fun it is to work on it.
I wanted chosen looks to be as authentic as possible, that is, appropriate to the appearance and character of the models, and at the same time eclectic, because with similar clothes, they do not go to work often. I tried to balance this with organicity and eclecticism. We created the make-up looks on the spot according to the character of the model and her persona.
The process of selecting women traders was exceptionally difficult: some did not understand our purpose, some did not trust us, for some it was unacceptable and some women’s husbands and sons did not allow them to participate. We had to overcome a lot of obstacles and barriers in this aspect. For example, 2 women did not come on the day of the shooting and we had to adjust the pre-prepared clothes and props to completely different models, however, in the end, everything went well and these women left very happy and satisfied.
I hope that when other people see this campaign, their perception of this topic will change at least a little tiny bit.
Women from the Bazaar
Real Women With Real Lives
CREATIVE DIRECTOR/ EDITOR/ GEORGIAN BATMAN: GIORGI AVALIANI, HOLY MOTORS ART DIRECTOR: NICK KUMBARI, HOLY MOTORS STRATEGY DIRECTOR: SHOTA CHINCHALADZE, HOLY MOTORS PROJECT MANAGER: KETI NIKOLASHVILI, HOLY MOTORS DESIGNER: TATA GUSHARASHVILI, HOLY MOTORS COPYWRITER: SOFIA TSINTSADZE, HOLY MOTORS PRODUCER: ANI MESKHIDZE PHOTOGRAPHER: LEKO CHKONIA VIDEOGRAPHER: ALEXANDER IAKOBASHVILI, NIKOLOZ TABUKASHVILI STYLING: JABA KURTISHVILI MUA: KRISTI VEKUA HAIRSTYLIST: NATIA CHOKHURI MODELS: NINO KHUTSISHVILI, SARAH LEYMBERG, VIKA AGRIZKOVA, MARINA MOTSONELIDZE, TEONA BEGLARASHVILI, LUIZA ASLANOVA EDITING: GIORGI KAPANADZE
LEGAL DISCLAIMER: WOMEN FROM THE BAZAAR IS A PROMOTIONAL MATERIAL BY COSMO.
