Our collaborators: Cultural and social entrepreneur, branding expert Marcella Echavarria

Speaking of stylish change-makers, we’d like to introduce you to Marcella Echavarria, who worked with us on our new identity which marked the transition from Magik Grace. A branding and marketing expert, Marcella has used her passion for art, design, culture, craft, and sustainable development to create a better world by linking developing communities to developed markets.

Style and soul
Marcella works one-on-one with artisans to preserve their craft and enhance profitability. She insists that it’s not just about business but about the conservation of culture. After living for a month with the indigenous Sikuani tribe in her native Colombia, Marcella realised how little she knew about her country and its cultural wealth. Soon after, she was launching SURevolution, a company involved in bridging worlds and bringing the work (and stories) of traditional artisans from around the world to the luxury market, in a mutually beneficial way. This would enable artisans to concentrate on the excellence of their craft rather than on creating cheap trinkets for tourists. She has since worked with several organisations including the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Grassroots Business Fund, ITC and the Royal Government of Cambodia, UNESCO, USAID, Technoserve Swaziland and more.

Multiple talents
Just like our previously profiled collaborator, model, Dr. Amritpal Kaur Kalsi, Marcella is a woman with many strengths. She is Deputy Editor of Hand Eye Magazine; a writer and photographer for the Ethical Fashion Forum, Publicaciones Semana and Avianca in Colombia, Indagare and Daily Candy in the US and ED in Chile; a curator at Aha Life and Source for Style and; has spoken at the International Development Bank, Foro Artesanal en México and several other international events about sustainability and entrepreneurship. All while travelling around the world running a boutique consulting firm that focuses on branding and development.

Find out more about Marcella on her website and also via this interview with Indagare, Aha Life and ioweyou.

Photos courtesy of Marcella. We’ll be sharing some more of her beautiful photography next week – stay tuned.