We had the good fortune of connecting with Tanushree Vaidya and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tanushree, how does your business help the community?
When I was creating Kaapus Co. I wanted to build a business that gave back to customers, our artisans and the planet. This really drove our choices and decisions. Our products are made to be machine washable and reusable for a long time. Cotton actually gets softer with use, making it a great sustainable option. We chose to work with handicraft artisans in rural India. We work to pay fair wages, have clean, safe working conditions and allow them to showcase their skills at an international level. Supporting an age old handicraft that dates back as far as 3500 BC was really important to us. We also chose products like our notebooks that utilize cotton waste in the paper. Our scrunchies use excess printed. All in all we hope to create beautiful, functional textile pieces that serve our customers for a long time and help eliminate the use of single use disposable items.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I was born and raised in Mumbai, India. I’ve always been artistically inclined since a young age. My career as a Luxury Destination Wedding Photographer in India exposed me to some of the most beautiful places across 4 continents, 14 countries and countless cities. I got a front row seat to some of the most beautiful weddings in the world. I witnessed beautiful design, talented artists from across the world and venues people can only dream of coming together to set the stage for something truly magnificent. These experiences really shaped my aesthetic and eye for detail.

When I moved to California in 2018 to start a life with my partner, Shreeraj, I was really excited to put together our first home. During this endeavor, I realized most of the craft and design I had always taken for granted wasn’t easy to find here. Most fabrics and home textiles were made of synthetic materials; mass produced and had no accountability in terms of their environmental and social impact. They shrank every 6 months, bled colors and they were not so great after a couple of washes. Overall it felt like a huge waste of time and money. Everything I did like was exorbitantly expensive, sold only in the big brand stores and ironically, made in India.

My nostalgia for block printed cotton goes all the way back to my childhood, where many an afternoon were spent shopping for the perfect printed cotton fabrics for clothes, curtains, cushions and fluffy Indian cotton blankets called Razais. I felt like there was room to create something better; something that tied in my love for pure fabrics, beautiful craftsmanship, something sustainable which gave back to the customers, artisans and the planet. I thought this would be a fabulous place to start. I researched several products, business models and narrowed down on specific products that I felt were missing here but could be very attractive if done right. I travelled across India to find the right quality and level of customization.

As things started shaping up, I still wasn’t sure how I was going to juggle a full time Wedding Photography business along with another business. I knew I was going to need someone I trusted to help me do justice to both my passions. Thankfully my friend and now Business Partner, Neha Sinha stepped in to help me. We worked together tirelessly to fine tune my vision and make it into something real and tangible. We currently do pretty much everything in-house; Photography, Graphic Design, Warehousing and Inventory, our Website, all of it. I wanted to pick a name for the business that was a nod to my Maharashtrian heritage. “Kaapus” is the Marathi word for cotton and represented so many values that we associated with: durability, softness, nostalgia and coziness. And thus Kaapus Co. was born.

Our journey has not been the easiest but we’ve been lucky to connect with other small businesses around us. We’re blessed to have people who have faced the problems we encounter every now and then and are willing to help us move forward with their experiences. There’s a great sense of community amongst our peers and I truly think that is the way forward.

If there’s one thing I’d want the world to know about our brand; we work very hard to responsible while ensuring that we’re anything but boring. We want to create a better world with our textile pieces, one home at a time. Each piece you buy from us is handmade, unique and gives back to you, our artisans and the planet and nothing can make us happier.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
My favorite spots to take my best friends to in California are:

1. Catalina Island is like a slice of Europe hiding only a short ferry ride away from LA.
2. Joshua tree is the perfect place for solitude and quiet recollection. Watching the stars at night in the desert is one of my most favorite things to do.
3. I love driving to Sonoma & Sebastopol to visit lesser known vineyards. Everyone goes to Napa which means lesser crowds which is always a bonus.
4. Guernville and Jenner are such cute, off beat towns up north toward Bodega Bay. There’s beautiful roads that are right on the coast and have the most gorgeous views.
5. Sausalito is another hidden gem, there’s great little stores and delicious fish and chips along with a unbelievable view of the San Francisco skyline.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I have quite a few people to dedicate my shoutout to. First my partner, Shreeraj for supporting me every step of the way, being my sounding board and pushing me to do more every single day. He gives me the stability I need in my life to truly be an artist and pursue my dreams. I tend to let my imagination run wild and he always helps me see the more practical side of things. There’s never a tough day that doesn’t get easier when I have him by my side.

Both our parents and my friends in India who have nurtured my connection with my home and culture; making distance completely irrelevant. It is so easy to lose yourself in another country but my relationships with them help me stay true to myself while building a new life here. Their love and support truly keeps me motivated to do my best in everything I attempt.

Lastly, I’d love to shout out to my business partner at Kaapus Co., Neha. Her support and enthusiasm helps me give my best to both my business endeavors. Having someone in my corner as I work to bring my dreams to life is invaluable. It’s great working with her and look forward to everything the future has in store for us!

  

Website: kaapus.co & tanushreevaidya.com

Instagram: @tanushree.vaidya, @kaapus.co & @tanushreevaidyaphotography

Image Credits
Wedding photography images – Tanushree Vaidya

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutLA is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.