Cool, green wallets use Cambodian designs

A new brand of recyclable wallets featuring Cambodian artists’ designs will be launched tonight, with its creators hoping it will provide a new source of revenue for local designers.
 

Loy, or cool, wallets, which will have its first pop-up event tonight at Bong Bong Bong bar and gallery, is made from Tyvac, a 100 percent recyclable, water resistant material.
 

Sebastian Gertgen, the founder of the Amboh design company, said his entrepreneurial skills could be easily emulated and wanted to encourage Cambodian designers to continue their creative pursuits as the market continues to grow.
 

“Any artist can do it themselves. Rather than just painting and then not knowing what to do with it, this is trendy, there will always be a market for wallets,” he said with a laugh.
 

Featuring designs from local and foreign artists, such as Lisa Mam, who designed the mural in the newly opened Starbucks in Boeung Keng Kang, as well as expatriate artists such as Chifumi, Mr. Gertgen said there was a growing market for Cambodian designed products.
 

“Don’t stop being an artist, the market is coming and we can develop it,” he said.
 

Graphic designer Em Thavry, 24, who worked alongside her sister Chavrak and Mr. Gertgen to design the original two wallets, said there was a larger demand for recyclable products as Cambodians become more aware of their impact on the environment.
 

“I think it will start to grow in the Cambodian market, especially those who want a greener, more recyclable product that you can use for a long time and after that they can recycle it. When it gets thrown away it won’t be damaging,” she said.
 

“The young and the students I think are more aware of it. I hope they feel like they want to be more involved.”
 

Ms. Thavry and her sisters’ designs feature colorful Cambodian cultural motifs such as the temples of Angkor as well as landmarks in Phnom Penh such as Central Market and the Royal Palace.

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