#BUYGOOD #DOGOOD is our credo: enjoy fashion while doing good.
Since 2009, ATELIER AVANZAR in Ecuador has been a social enterprise empowering disadvantaged women by providing them with practical skills to build independent and financially sustainable lives. Our artisans strive to create a better future for themselves and their families, taking an active role in the economy and shaping their own paths.
We design and handcraft high-quality products with charming patterns and sophisticated details. Produced in small series under carefully verified ethical conditions, each piece reflects our commitment to both social and economic impact. Every bag is made with love, dedication, and a strong sense of hope for a brighter future.
Design is only one side of creation — execution is the other. Here, our talented women bring their years of expertise in weaving and crochet to the process. With remarkable skill and precision, they transform designs into perfectly crafted pieces. The refinement with leather adds further complexity, as combining flexible yarn with rigid leather demands the highest level of craftsmanship. Overseeing this work is the head of the ATELIER, who carefully coordinates and monitors every step as pieces move between the workshop and the leather finishing, ensuring that our high standards of quality are met.
Since its founding, Atelier Avanzar has also been supported by creative, generous, and talented designers such as Florence Bachofen-Székely, Susi Riz, Susi Prinz, and Rejane Rosenberger.
We are deeply grateful to each of them, as their contributions have shaped what Avanzar is today, helping the ATELIER achieve greater relevance, success, and professionalism.
Margarita
Behind the label ATELIER AVANZAR stands the non-profit Fundación Avanzar, founded in 1999 in Zurich by Margarita Heredia Forster with the mission of empowering women from low-income backgrounds to become true entrepreneurs — able to contribute to their families and communities.
From Switzerland, Margarita leads both the Foundation and the Atelier team in Ecuador, where together they create timeless pieces sold primarily in Europe. Driven by her passion to foster the development of women, children, and teenagers in her country of origin, Margarita sees the Atelier as a powerful way to generate economic support for the Foundation while celebrating craftsmanship, purpose, and impact.
Find out more about the Foundation behind Atelier Avanzar: www.fundacion-avanzar.com