When our founder Devika picked up her life in Chicago and moved to Portugal to start Quirk, her first mission once touching down was to find a factory to manufacture our bags. She couldn't speak Portuguese, didn't have any connections in Portugal and the world was in the middle of a pandemic, so this turned out to be quite a tricky task.
However, after hours of research, many email exchanges and phone calls, and lots of driving around the Portuguese countryside to meet with potential partners, Devika finally found our factory.
From the beginning there were three main factors that guided the search and selection of our factory:
1) The quality of craftsmanship
2) Shared values concerning sustainability and ethical working conditions
3) The potential for a long-term partnership.
With these criteria in mind, we selected a small, family-owned business based in Porto, Portugal that has been manufacturing quality cork products for 20 years.
Together, we have built a strong, positive working relationship. With two decades of experience working with cork behind them, our partners have lots of advice and insights to share and always go the extra mile to create the best product possible. They helped us create The Lisbon from scratch, working with us from rough sketches through every iteration until we nailed the perfect design.
Our factory shares our values surrounding quality and sustainability All of our products are handmade by expert craftspeople and undergo multiple quality checks. They are committed to minimizing waste as much as possible; all leftover materials are collected by recycling companies to divert waste from landfills. Our factory is passionate about supporting its community and acquires all of its supplies locally.