Center for Cultural Preservation and Economic Development (CPED) was granted a license on May 13, 2016, by the Thua Thien Hue Union of Science and Technology Association under decision No. 75/QD-LHH.
CPED’s mission is to provide marketing support, opportunities, and access to new markets for Vietnamese artisans who practice traditional crafts. It acts as a bridge between the artisans and domestic and international markets, media, and institutions. An example of this is the work CPED does with the Deng traditional weaving craft in A Luoi district, Hue province.
Traditional Deng weaving was officially recognized in 2017 as a national intangible cultural heritage. However, increasingly, over the last decades, the Deng weaving communities have not been able to afford the threads to weave with, forcing them to seek income elsewhere and placing this beautiful craft and traditional way of living at risk of being lost forever. In 2018, CPED successfully set up a partnership with Coats Phong Phu Co., the Vietnamese arm of Coats Group plc., the world’s largest industrial thread manufacturer. Though this partnership approximately 1260 kilos of threads, from overproduction, are donated to twelve Deng weaving communities every two months. The Deng communities, in addition to using the donated thread to weave fabric for domestic and international trade, also weave traditional costumes and dowry gifts for their daughters.
Coats Phong Phu Co., Ltd. supports the use of threads to substitute traditional materials
To ensure there is a minimum income, for the weavers, CPED commits to buying back a certain amount of the Deng fabric each year. This has been especially vital during Covid. Since 2018, there has been a marked increase in the numbers of Deng women weaving and the training of the younger generation, both of which are vital for preservation.
In conjunction with the above CPED continues to represent and promote the Deng weaving both domestically and internationally. For example, In 2018 the Deng fabric was seen on the catwalk at New York Fashion Week, and in 2019 CPED and its partner, FASHION4FREEDOM (F4F), placed the Deng fabric central to a menswear collection that walked down ELLE Vietnam Fashion Show.
On the product, the classic pattern features are still preserved
Moving forward CPED is focusing on developing new fashion accessories using the Deng fabric, to sell globally and to attract industry and buyers while bringing awareness to this beautiful craft.
BUI THI PHUONG THAO
