THE PEOPLE'S FACTORY was created by siblings Khaled and Mariam AlWoqayyan; the former a civil engineer, with the latter pursuing a university degree in finance.
In early 2010, Khaled had the opportunity to learn how to operate some manufacturing machinery. He made several samples that he took home with him. After sharing them with his family, they came to the conclusion that they would be able to make innovative products to market in Kuwait.
From the very beginning, Khaled really wanted to involve his family in different aspects of this project. So in March of 2010, they decided to present their products in a large exhibition. Thankfully, their products proved to be a success.
What is unique about their designs is that they are always evolving. “When we started our production, most of our products were made of colorful acrylic. However after responding to advice from our customers, we noticed that our wooden products have a greater following. Right now, I would say that our style is inspired by what is locally known as the “mashrabiya”. We mainly play around with 3 different patterns and six different colors,” says Khaled. “Our products are usually born out of our needs and the needs of the people we observe around us,” he adds.
One of their products, the Tea Labels, came into fruition after they noticed how difficult it was to differentiate the contents of thermoses at family gatherings. You will find that most of the products like the Tea Tray and Dessert Tray are created with family gatherings in mind. Basically, they find solutions for local problems, no matter how trivial, in a way that imported products can never achieve.
At the beginning, everything from conceptual design, to prototyping, to manufacturing was being carried out exclusively by Khaled. He had limited experience and time which meant that it took them weeks to transform an idea into a product. However, after their early success, they decided to hire staff that aided them with implementation. This gave them a greater ability to mass produce the products to meet rising demand. Currently, customers are told that ordered products, if not in stock, take between 2-4 weeks to manufacture.
For more information on The People's Factory, check out their website.
– Fajer Al-Farsi
Images courtesy of The People's Factory
