Borneo Bags

Values

Our Story

Borneo Bags was born out of a desire to support the last remaining semi-nomadic tribe in South East Asia, the Penan, through meaningful employment. Every bag is made by the Penan tribe of Borneo, who are directly affected by the deforestation of their rainforest homes by corporate and government entities.

“We cannot help everybody, but our belief is that everybody can help some. We focus on helping the women of the Penan tribe to earn regular income, empowering the women and engendering pride and respect.”

While working as a teacher on the tropical island of Borneo, founder Jacky witnessed firsthand the struggles of the Penan, who were losing their rainforest due to palm oil plantations. She began supporting those who came to the local hospital for treatment by buying them good food and teaching them about basic hygiene, nutrition and dental care.

During this time, Jacky also initiated the sale of handmade products, such as mats and bags, at the school where she taught. The proceeds were used to support the Penan's welfare, including education for the children. With increasing support from parents and community members, an unofficial organization called Helping Hands was formed. Jacky further established The Penan Women Project in Kuching, while staying connected to the charities from her home in Auckland. In 2020, after retiring from teaching, she set up Borneo Bags, a social enterprise from her home in Mount Eden.

Borneo Bags work directly with their weavers and have frequent contact with them. All their weavers are paid a fair wage with regular financial boosts, enabling them to truly compete in a global market. There are no factories, the women set their own prices and weave in their homes while their children play happily close by. They are also provided with extra funds for healthcare, education, transport etc when needed.

To date, their social enterprise has transformed many livelihoods through meaningful employment. One of their weavers, Samantha, is the daughter of the headman of Kampong Bahaghia. Samantha’s parents’ generation was forced to settle on land allocated to them as their rainforest was steadily chopped down to make way for palm oil plantations. Their original way of life was completely disrupted by greed and corruption. However, through Borneo Bags, Sarah is able to provide for her family and preserve her ancestral culture of weaving.

Borneo Bags pride themselves on being 100% handmade. Their patterns are not recorded in writing but etched in their memories, passed through time between the women of the generations. No two bags are the same and there can be slight differences in the size and design of each one. In fact, each bag carries a certificate of authenticity with the name of the weaver so you know exactly who made it and can connect with their story.

Their unique range of products is made with either rattan or recyclable polypropylene pallet strapping, a modern weaving substitute which is durable, washable and comes in a variety of colours. Meanwhile, their traditional rattan range, uses natural rattan fibre that takes over 3 months to harvest, prepare, and soak in plant dyes before being woven. It is sometimes even buried in the soil to achieve its desired colour.

All profits made from Borneo Bags are returned to the indigenous weavers. They also donate proceeds to the Penan Women Project, a charity Jacky set up to empower Penan women to improve their lives and break the cycle of poverty. 

You can shop Borneo Bags online or find them in over 50 retailers in NZ, including Mudbrick, Vetro and some Unichem Pharmacies.