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Corporate Update

`Craft Needs Strategic Branding Support, Alongwith Policy Support’

• By  Shubhangi Prasad
• April 01, 2026

Padma Yangchan, co-founder of Namza Couture, comes from Ladakh and brings a deeply rooted perspective to contemporary fashion. Her work is simple in thought yet rich in meaning, focused on preserving, evolving and celebrating Ladakh’s textile wisdom. Through Namza, she creates garments that go beyond being worn—each piece is an experience, carrying memory, land and identity.

In 2022, she received the Nari Shakti Puraskar from former President Ram Nath Kovind for her work in reviving Ladakh’s lost cuisine and hand-weaving traditions. A designer and café founder, she blends fashion with food and sustainability. Through her work, she is bringing Ladakh’s culture to a wider audience while adapting its craft for global relevance.

Shubhangi Prasad

Your journey with Namza is deeply rooted in Ladakh’s culture. What was the spark or defining moment that made you choose this path?

The defining moment was returning to Ladakh after living in Delhi, Mumbai and London. I saw how undervalued our indigenous wool, weaving, and craft traditions were. Ladakh has raw beauty and deep craftsmanship, yet little structured design direction or luxury positioning.

Namza was born from the desire to reinterpret our heritage, not as costume, but as couture.

In today’s competitive Indian textile landscape, what key opportunities do you see for craft-driven brands like Namza?

I feel India has immense craft diversity, but gaps remain in:

• Design innovation aligned with global luxury standards

• Consistent quality control

• Branding and storytelling

• Structured artisan development

The opportunity lies in creating craft brands that are culturally rooted but aesthetically international.

Craft-based production often faces scalability challenges. Tell us about your experience here.

Craft cannot be rushed. Instead of scaling fast, we scale mindfully. At Namza Couture we:

• Work with small artisan clusters

• Train artisans in quality benchmarks

• Develop sampling systems before production

• Maintain realistic timelines

We believe that luxury craft requires controlled growth, not mass expansion.

What are some challenges unique to building a craft-driven luxury brand in a remote region like Ladakh, and how have you turned those challenges into strengths?

We have faced few challenges, such as:

• Logistics and transportation

• Seasonal production disruptions

• Limited skilled manpower

Our strengths include:

• Authenticity

• Pure raw materials - stories of silk route, pashmina, wool

• Strong cultural identity

Our remoteness is something which gives us narrative power and exclusivity.

India’s textile industry is seeing a strong push toward sustainability and traceability. How do you integrate these practices while keeping production viable and commercially sound?

For us, sustainability is not a trend, it is geography.

We use local wool, silk and handwoven textiles, minimize waste through small-batch production, avoid overproduction, and produce primarily through offline retail.

Commercial viability comes from positioning our pieces as heirloom investments, not seasonal commodities.

In Ladakh sustainability is a way of living.

In Ladakh, resources are precious. Nothing is wasted. This philosophy guides us for making:

• Limited collections

• Long-lasting silhouettes

• Repair-friendly construction

• Slow production cycles

We design for longevity, not trend turnover.

Are there emerging fibres, craft techniques, or textile innovations from Ladakh that you believe the industry should pay attention to?

Yes, the textile industry should pay attention to:

• Indigenous Ladakhi sheep wool, Pashima, camel wool

• Yak wool blending

• Traditional backstrap and pit loom weaving adaptations

• Heritage embroidery reinterpretations

These fibres have strong insulation properties and luxury potential when refined through design.

What values guide your leadership? How do you nurture creativity, cultural sensitivity, and craftsmanship within your team?

I lead with cultural responsibility, discipline, emotional intelligence, and creative integrity.

I nurture creativity by allowing research time, encouraging artisans to share stories and ensuring our team understands the cultural significance behind every motif.

What are the top three operational challenges you face running a textile-and-craft brand from Ladakh, and how have you built systems to overcome them?

For us the top operational challenges are:

1. Harsh winters affecting production timelines

2. Logistics and freight costs

3. Skill retention among young artisans

We overcome this by planning seasonal calendars early, maintaining buffer inventory and investing in artisan training.

As someone who champions traditional textiles, what is your view on India’s current textile policies, especially regarding handloom, GI tagging, and export opportunities?

India has made positive strides in handloom recognition and GI tagging. However, more structured export facilitation and design-led cluster development are needed.

Craft needs strategic branding support, not just subsidies.

How do you see the future of Indian craft-based fashion evolving over the next decade?

The next decade will see:

• Traceable luxury

• Region-specific identity branding

• Smaller but stronger craft houses

• International collaborations rooted in authenticity

I believe craft will become the definition of true luxury.

What makes a craft cluster truly successful - community ownership, market linkage, government support, or design intervention?

I think the strongest clusters combines:

• Community ownership

• Market linkage

• Design intervention &

• Government infrastructure support

All the four pillars must work together for a craft cluster.

What is your advices to young designers and entrepreneurs who dream of building a brand grounded in culture and sustainability?

For the young designers and entrepreneurs I would say:

Be patient.

Craft takes time.

Do not romanticise culture, first understand it deeply.

Build systems, not just aesthetics.

And remember “discipline sustains creativity.”

As an Indian entrepreneur, what do you feel is your responsibility towards your nation, textile industry, the community, and the next generations?

I feel my responsibility is:

• To preserve heritage without dilution

• To generate dignified livelihoods

• To represent Ladakh responsibly

• To inspire younger generations to see value in their roots

For me craft is not nostalgia, it is economic power.

What are your aspirations for Namza?

I envision:

• A global presence for Himalayan luxury

• A structured artisan training centre in Ladakh

• Collaborative capsules with international designers

• A museum-style experiential flagship in Ladakh

Namza should become a cultural landmark, not just a label.

Finally, we would like to know, if Namza Couture had the opportunity to collaborate with the mainstream textile industry (mills, brands, designers), what type of partnership would create maximum impact for Ladakh’s artisans?

For us the most impactful partnership would involve:

• Mills developing refined yarns using Ladakhi wool

• Design houses co-creating capsule collections

• Export houses opening global distribution channels

• Transparent sourcing models benefiting artisans directly

Such partnerships would bring scale without erasing our identity.

In 2022, she received the Nari Shakti Puraskar from former President Ram Nath Kovind for her work in reviving Ladakh’s lost cuisine and hand-weaving traditions. A designer and café founder, she blends fashion with food and sustainability. Through her work, she is bringing Ladakh’s culture to a wider audience while adapting its craft for global relevance.