The pandemic has changed consumers’ shopping habits as they look for more authentic, locally made products for their homes.
Emro Designs was founded in 2019 by Minjungbal/Bundjalung woman, Emma Rolls. The brand helps to bring traditional stories to early learning and homes around the country.
The collection includes rugs, cushion covers, recycled outdoor mats and stunning picnic rugs. Each of the designs is awash with rich colour and beautiful patterns.
Rolls’ hope is that these pieces serve as a talking point for those that purchase the items and help to shine a light on the rich Aboriginal culture and stories.
“Our main goal is to bring more Aboriginal culture into schools, daycares and homes,” she says.
“We hope that our captivating pieces serve as a talking point and a true appreciation for our culture and stories.”
Emro Designs is a 100 per cent Aboriginal owned and operated business. “It came about quite organically. I was having conversations with people in the early learning industry, going into daycare with my boys.
“I recognised that there was a gap and knew that within early learning, storytelling took place on the carpet or rugs. I thought how amazing would it be to have these beautiful artworks as rugs that serve as an educational piece also and help share our culture.”
Rolls’ passion was to start her own business, having witnessed an under-representation of indigenous owned businesses within the early education resources sector, and from a passion to be able to share local indigenous artists work and incorporate more authentic indigenous resources into early education.
“We have found a lot of our artists through Instagram, which has been such a powerful resource for us. We have a couple of artists that we have worked with from the beginning and have brought on some new artists when we have introduced new products such as our picnic rugs.
“Our hope is that we get to work with the same artists for a long time, introducing new designs and broadening our range.”
When a product is purchased, Rolls includes a laminated card which details information about the artist and tells the story of the artwork.
“The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive,” she adds. “For us to be 100 per cent Aboriginal owned and operated is so important. Our consumers feel more confident that they know where their purchase is going to and having that transparency is vital.”
Profit from each item sold goes directly back to the artists, to ensure a sustainable income for the artists and ensuring they can continue sharing our rich culture through their artwork.
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