Kaleya was born from a deep appreciation of handcrafted goods.
We are endlessly inspired by the moment of pause and feelings of awe and delight that we experience when holding a beautiful object someone made by hand.
When founder Jessica first moved to Zambia in 2015 she was blown away by the craftsmanship she was surrounded by. She quickly learned that if you were looking for something special you wouldn't go to a store. Instead, you would browse a local Sunday market or have a piece custom-made by a skilled carpenter, tailor, or welder.
Despite this, on trips home to the U.S. she rarely saw Zambian artisans represented, even in shops that carried goods from other African countries.
Through Kaleya we hope to change that.
Our aim is to make beautiful and functional artisan pieces from Zambia more accessible to the benefit of both makers and buyers.
We are committed to sourcing ethically and operating in a way that ensures artisans truly benefit from the expansion of their wares into a broader market.
Kaleya is a mother-daughter team. Jessica is based primarily in Zambia and works directly with our artisan partners with a focus on sourcing, design, and production while Jane handles on the ground logistics in the U.S. including inventory, shipping, and quality control.