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In Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, a felting artisan concluded her day with a heartfelt prayer, asking for the prosperity and health of her partners. The following morning, an unexpected surge of Shopify orders greeted sisters-in-law Chinara Makashova and Nazgul Esenbaeva, along with their colleagues, marking what felt like an extraordinary breakthrough.
Motivated by this newfound demand, they sprang into action. Their enterprise, which had grown from humble beginnings, was now successfully exporting unique felted slippers and other artisan products to retailers worldwide. With assistance from USAID’s green business initiative, they were also bolstering their production capabilities and launching a modern direct-to-consumer online store equipped with essential payment processing and data security to reach customers directly.
However, just as their ecommerce plans were materializing, funding from USAID suddenly ceased, creating a significant $35,000 gap in their financial resources. While the internet simplifies retail business for many, in this landlocked nation, a cumbersome banking system coupled with sanctions and cybersecurity challenges created barriers to growth. Tumar’s journey weaves together nomadic heritage, Soviet history, and modern digital commerce, navigating an evolving business landscape amid infrastructural hurdles. Their initial challenge lay in automating a 5,000-year-old felting process, using machinery salvaged from the remnants of the Soviet Union.
For centuries, Kyrgyz nomads traversed the Eurasian steppes, caring for their flocks while transforming thick wool into durable shyrdak blankets that adorned their yurts. This ancient textile, recognized as one of the earliest, offered resilience against harsh climates. However, industrialization, paired with Soviet influence, nearly led to the erasure of this traditional craft. By the 1990s, the unique art of wet felting teetered on the brink of extinction, kept alive only by a handful of dedicated individuals when a group of university graduates in Bishkek made efforts to learn and revitalize these practices.
Makashova and Esenbaeva, along with Makashova’s aunt Roza, adopted the ancient technique, producing items such as shyrdaks and kalpak hats. They founded Tumar Art Group in 1998, and within ten years, had secured their first wholesale partnership. In recent years, USAID initiatives have empowered them to disseminate their knowledge to women across Central Asia, thereby revitalizing an ancient industry while fostering a new economic landscape.
On the Felt Factory Floor
Today, Tumar’s factory in Bishkek is a vibrant workplace filled with sunlight, adorned with colorful floor tiles, and sprinkled with geraniums on windowsills. Workers skillfully pull large sheets of “pre-felt” from a wool carding machine, while a control panel reminiscent of a Cold War era launch site awaits their adjustments, featuring dials labeled in Chinese and handwritten Cyrillic translations.
In contrast to commercial felting operations that often rely on synthetic materials and needle-felting methods, Tumar has maintained their commitment to traditional wet felting processes. They have ingeniously engineered custom solutions to automate various stages of production, utilizing scavenged Soviet machinery to fulfill their unique needs.
As Makashova explained, the commitment to traditional techniques remains strong, particularly in the intricate process of wet pressing. The lack of modern machinery for this specific aspect has necessitated the restoration of outdated equipment or the development of new variants based on Soviet designs.
To manufacture their highly sought-after felted slippers, Tumar requires heavy tubs to heat water and flywheels to apply consistent pressure and movement to the wool. Finding suitable vintage Soviet machines presented a significant challenge due to their dwindling availability. Lacking sufficient funds, the fledgling company has sought to patch together various tools and machinery from different sources, enhancing their capabilities in the process.
Fortunately, serendipity smiled upon them when a team member discovered a tub and flywheels in a scrap heap. Their engineering team revitalized these finds, which became integral to their production.
By the 2010s, Tumar expanded its global wholesale partnerships while continuing to cater to retail customers at their main store in central Bishkek, which has become a popular spot for both locals and tourists.
The late 2010s brought a rise in consumer interest in sustainable, natural materials, which was noted by a shopper named Barclay Saul from Richmond, Virginia. Enamored with Tumar’s transparent supply chain, he and a partner decided to launch Kyrgies, selling slippers directly online from a Richmond storage unit.
However, by spring 2020, as tourism plummeted, Tumar’s physical retail operations also came to a standstill, while Kyrgies experienced a substantial increase in sales. As people sought comfortable home footwear made from natural materials, CEO Saul remarked on the lessons learned from this business, emphasizing a trend toward quality over quantity in consumer behavior. Kyrgies’ online sales have consistently doubled each year, enabling Tumar to expand its workforce and quadruple its production capacity over five years.
Despite this growth, Chinara voiced a prevalent challenge: the aspiration to develop a dedicated online store remains unrealized. While the retail outlet contributes only a quarter of their revenue, it plays a crucial role in product innovation. Platforms like Shopify have allowed Kyrgies to launch their US-based retail venture swiftly, but running an online business in Kyrgyzstan is fraught with challenges. The initial obstacle is high shipping costs from Central Asia. Moreover, payment options are limited in Kyrgyzstan; the absence of PayPal complicates financial transactions significantly. Makashova lamented the pervasive challenges posed by inadequate payment systems.
Today, Kyrgyzstan’s banking procedures are entangled with Russian systems, and the sanctions imposed by Western nations after the Crimea invasion have introduced significant complexities to cross-border transactions. Some banks in Kyrgyzstan, concerned about potential blacklisting, have severed ties with Russian payments systems, causing difficulties for enterprises like Tumar. Additionally, apprehensions regarding China’s access to American consumer data have forced payment platforms in neighboring countries to impose stringent cybersecurity measures. Failed payment attempts can result in lost customers, a loss Tumar has experienced all too often.
As a result, Tumar’s initial ecommerce efforts became outdated, urging the team to reengineer their online presence with cutting-edge compliance measures for secure transactions. They aimed to revitalize their online retail potential by implementing robust security protocols and ensuring a seamless customer experience.
For raw materials, Tumar collaborates with around 1,500 small family farms across Kyrgyzstan, each typically raising a modest number of sheep. This segment of the supply chain often grapples with rudimentary technology.
By January 2025, Tumar had mapped out a comprehensive plan, launching a new website supported by funding to enhance their direct sales mechanisms. Yet, the initiative faced a significant hurdle: the financing was derived from a green business grant from USAID, which was no longer available.
Currently, Tumar is optimistic about enrolling in Estonia’s e-Residency program to facilitate modern, global payment processing solutions, but they still face a pressing $35,000 funding void due to changes at USAID.
At the outskirts of Bishkek, Tumar’s new wool processing facility presents a blend of tradition and modernity. A “break yurt” offers workers a space to enjoy tea and snacks, adjacent to a more contemporary setting where architectural plans for the facility’s development are discussed. This facility aims to process 100 tons of previously discarded wool annually, repurposing resources that might otherwise have gone to waste. Tumar plans to introduce new eco-friendly products, such as biodegradable slippers and soundproof insulation panels crafted from leftover materials, while ensuring a steady supply of quality raw materials that many in the region lack access to.
Ultimately, Tumar aims to empower other artisans with the opportunity for direct online orders and help them maintain quality as they scale up. “We want to open up possibilities for artisans,” Makashova affirmed, emphasizing the necessity of continued growth to achieve this vision.
As Esenbaeva noted, there exists a multitude of workshops and small businesses across Central Asia yearning for access to quality raw materials. Therefore, as Tumar continues to innovate, it must also expand its collaboration with local sheep farmers and enhance its capabilities for wholesale production. Their journey reflects a commitment not just to their craft but to nurturing relationships that will elevate the entire sector. Esenbaeva humorously quoted Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, “We are responsible for those we tame,” illustrating their dedication to fostering growth in their community.
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www.theverge.com