These colourful bags by Tokiké will surely attract fashion enthusiasts who love to play with colours and are looking for something refreshing and functional too! Karan Bafna, founder, Tokiké believes that it’s a movement made by the creators, for the creators with accessories “enabling” statements of personal expression. In Karan’s opinion, these bags represent the artistic, the crazies, and the ones that challenge the mundane. Here, each piece of art is made by the creators and their inspiration. Each collection is designed and always inspired by art, art styles, artists, and the stories they want to tell, and passed on to make more art to the people who find themselves as a part of the Tokiké movement. In a quick conversation with TMM, the young entrepreneur shares the narrative of the brand and his plans for the next 5 years.
The Instagram bio of the brand reads, “Changing the narrative of what it means to “fit in”.” Explain.
Where I grew up, I was always “looked at” a little differently and constantly compared to the people my age. My choices were regarded as “unconventional”—from the way I dressed to the career I chose. I was the oddball wearing oversized tees, running a fast-food chain by the day, and DJ-ing by the night. I was told by many “Yeh apna kaam nahi hai, kuch accha kaam karo” (“This isn’t our kind of work. Pick a decent line of work for yourself”) but it never occurred to me as unconventional work because I always had the support and push from my family to chase what I really loved doing. It never bothered me that I didn’t “fit in” into a certain stereotype yet I wasn’t looking to stand out. I never wanted my choices to be looked at differently.
A reflection of this is where Tokiké takes ground. Our designs speak a lot for themselves. The way they have been created is very different from what exists in the mainstream or independent label market. They are bold, eccentric and anything but subtle, and made for everybody who finds themselves often being called a “misfit” to feel a part of the community. An extension of this thought, where you are not looked at differently because of your choices, rather find a sense of inclusion because of the like-minded community around you in what it means to be “changing the narrative of what it means to “fit in”.”
What is the design philosophy of Tokiké?
Tokiké is a movement made by the creators, for the creators with our accessories “enabling” statements of personal expression. It represents the artistic, the crazies, the ones that challenge the mundane.
Tokike’s creations are made by the creators and their inspiration. Each collection is designed and always inspired by art, art styles, artists, and the stories they want to tell, and passed on to make more art to the people who find themselves as a part of the Tokiké movement.
The bags at Tokiké are handcrafted with up-cycled stock load fabrics. How do you ensure the quality of the fabric and durability of the bags?
While we use stock-load fabric, it has been made at the top mills, yarn-dyed, and is ready for some heavy-duty usage. Each bag has been handcrafted by skilled artisans working in the bag industry for over 15 years with experience playing around with a range of fabric and design styles. They have also undergone intense wear and tear testing to ensure their strength and quality. That makes Tokiké bags ready for everyday usage as well as for being a rock-solid company for travel and adventure.
Every bag comes with at least 15 to 28 top-notch quality components, all of which have been sourced by handpicking. According to product experts, all Tokiké bags should go a minimum of 5-7 years problem-free, except the properties of cotton taking its shape which is fairly natural and beyond our control! (laughs)
As a homegrown brand, what are the challenges that you faced while building the brand?
We’ve hit all the roadblocks that a young/emerging homegrown brand would face, especially because we are a pandemic baby. The whole process of material sourcing, handpicking components, and processing became twice as complicated due to the majority of businesses being shut, imports, transport, and markets slowing down, scarcity in the labour market as well as the financial hit. A six-month-long process stretched to a year and a half with our launch being delayed at least five times.
However, what came out of it was even better than what we had originally planned as we now know to firefight all sorts of manufacturing, quality testing as well as reach obstacles, making sure what reaches the Tokiké wearers is nothing short of only the best.
In the present time, millennials & Gen Z are addicted to online shopping with a plethora of options. What do you think makes Tokiké stand out of the box?
Our products—the designs, the quality, and the way they’re built to be unique and expressive, and our philosophy—being an art-inspired movement, authentic and true to our wearer.
We’ve seen the drive in millennials and Gen Z to create something unusual but not with the intention of simply standing out. It’s instead to unite and build. Tokiké belongs to these oddball creators and is inspired by them. So there’s always going to be something fresh that fits their lifestyle and matches their choices of expression that comes from us.
Tell us about the latest collection Jack in the Block. What is so special in the name?
Jack In The Block is our debut collection, true to the Tokiké DNA of being bold, unrestrained, and inspired by art and artists.
It tells a story in the art style of Piet Mondrian, a Dutch painter whose exploration of “Cubism” through blocks and lines of bold colours was odd, nothing like what conventional art looked like yet was extremely personal to his experiences that he expressed through his art. “Jack In The Block” is a translation of his art and escapism.
Where do you see the brand in the next 5 years?
Tokiké is a movement in the making and will continually evolve over the next five years, we see this taking flight. From collaborating with creators across various industries to building a platform that unites the misfits, we’ve got a lot of fun, exciting and crazy stuff in the pipeline.
We plan on going global with the brand and creating an exchange between global and Indian talent on the street art and performance art front once our community grows and things get better amidst a pandemic. We intend on creating a collaborative platform for creators to come together and bring their creations to life not just commercially but also to give back to society, give back to nature and contribute every bit we can to bring about a change for the good. We’ve just begun; a lot is on its way!
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