Who we are
INAÃRA is a homegrown Qatar brand that brings you hand-woven and handcrafted products from India at fair prices. We aim to generate as much demand for the wares of the predominantly rural artists that we work with, as well as bring to the Qatar resident, unique & quality products with a soul and a heart. Inaãra is a socially driven business bringing you fair trade luxury and collectibles.
Our Concept
The artisan and their communities are our priority. Top on our objectives is to create an awareness of the craft forms that find themselves in every mainstream global lifestyle brand without a single nod to the artisans behind them or the history of their crafts.
Our work & its context
Inaãra was born in the aftermath of two significant events that have greatly impacted the unorganized rural economy of India. Communities that relied heavily on the patronage of foreign buyers seeking quality products.
The demonetization of currency in India devastated the cash dependent unorganized economy, followed by Covid which was a death knell for many of these communities
Over the years since its inception in 2021, Inaãra has grown to develop deep bonds with their artisans - who enjoy the process of creating new, unusual products using their heritage skill.
The Origin Story from the Founder
When I moved to Qatar I left behind a decade
long career in tech product management that I longed to return to, but
personal challenges held me back. When my daughter Inara came into this
world, something changed, the corporate rigmarole lost its appeal. But I now had a daughter to raise and strongly felt that I had to be all that I could
be so that she knows that she can do so too.
Inaãra is many things, but at its core it's a fiercely female brand. As someone who has emerged fighting a deeply patriarchal and prejudiced society, I have worn the badge of female empowerment on my sleeve. Inaãra is my ode to that empowerment. It is the freedom to be different, to embrace bold tastes and pleasures, to deviate from the conditioned norms of society and decorate our homes and bodies as we want.
And that holds true for our cultural symbols as well. Expat life makes you tone them down as you try to assimilate in a multi-cultural society like in the Gulf. I’d see Indian items sold at a premium at branded stores, without any nod to their origin or the artisans who skillfully employed their heritage skills to produce them. And it really pained me to see art and crafts with so much history behind them decorate shelves like generic mass produced products. But they come from a land with a prolific variety of heritage textile, wood, and metal art to offer by thousands of small communities.
I hope Inaãra can be one of the loud voices in the middle-eastern region speaking for those whose arts travel worldwide to lend elegance and character to individual homes.
Our Commitment to our partners
We have a personal commitment towards our artisan groups and no matter how hard it is to maintain fair trade and fair pricing at our end, we stick by it as much as possible. While we are a commercial enterprise, bringing recognition to their work and ensuring steady income to our partners is one of our primary goals.
Our Commitment to You
A coin has two sides, and a chain is strongest when it comes full circle. We don't just stand for the artisan - we stand for you as well. To make owning beautiful and meaningful things less opaque, and a more transparent process. To help you understand what is good for you, and to pay attention to your needs in your environments, so that you as a customer are seen, heard, and understood. We work too to bridge the gap between the creator and the consumer. To bring you quality that's accessible. And a way to lead a more authentic way of life.
Conscious Living & Sustainability
At Inaãra, we work as closely as possible with artisan communities, and it is our hope that by reducing the gap between the creator and the consumer, we can encourage conscious purchasing. We firmly believe that an awareness of the effort and skill that has gone in producing a product will encourage mindfulness in the consumer, and a desire to preserve it for longer.
Heritage Weaves & Crafts
Inaãra is proudly part of a movement to preserve ethnic arts by reimagining them for contemporary lives, thereby helping support struggling artisanal communities, and providing them with renewed sources of livelihood. Hand-in-hand is the preservation of specialized craft skills that have been handed down parent to child over generations and in some cases – millennia.
Bespoke & Curated
As a small business we at Inaãra handpick every single item that makes our catalogue. It takes months of mining through thousands of options to select items that are special, aesthetic, and a joy to own or gift to others.
Breathable Fabrics for Hot Climates.
We endeavour to bring organic, light, and breathable fabrics to Qatar at affordable prices. The cottons and silks we source are skin-friendly, absorbent, and perfect for a life in the desert. We seek out breathable fabrics for everything that we offer - from curtains, cushions, bags, to apparel.
Customized Products
The biggest advantage of working direct with artisan/manufacturer is the ability to customize products. Many of Inaãra products have been created exclusively for us, modified from original to suit the Qatar lifestyle and preferences. Our customized rugs remain a customer favourite, as do our customized gift sets.
Artisanal Lifestyle & Decor
Art is at the centre of our products. Some apparent, and others in more subdued forms like the weaving techniques used. Our clientele seek our items not merely for how they appear, but for what they are. Our products are individualistic and add to the story of every home and person. We attempt our best to steer away from generic options and to truly bring you something special.
Rabia Fathima Qazi
Founder & Managing Director
Founder and chief visionary, Rabia is the driving force behind the company. Inaãra is a culmination of her deep passion for heritage arts and textiles, and a strong love for entrepreneurship.
She is passionate about the continuation of heritage Indian crafts and believes strongly in both fair trade and fair pricing for artisans and customers alike. Her love for Indian textile and wood crafts was inculcated in her since childhood, and she has consequently inherited the knowledge and skill to identify, interpret, and reimagine the heritage crafts.
Leveraging her background, Rabia has managed to build a strong brand with a clear identity, and one that fills an important gap in the Qatar market. She comes with extensive experience in product development and launching new businesses in culturally diverse markets. That along with her academic background in media studies & IS makes her perfectly suited to be at the helm of a dynamic business like Inaãra.
Mizna Nizar
Managing Partner & Operations Director
The growing brand has found a second champion in Mizna Nizar. Mizna's extensive 18-year business experience in the Gulf region enriches her role at Inaãra, representing a pivotal step in propelling the brand to new heights.
As an associate owner of various family run Telecom and Construction businesses, Mizna is a league ahead in supply chain management, and new partnership development. Her commitment to sustainability is a product of her profound love for nature. Her fondness for natural textiles and Indian artwork stems from her upbringing, nurtured by her artistically inclined mother, shaping her appreciation for cultural heritage and creativity.
Mizna's joining has already shown a big impact in the smoothening of operations and logistics of bringing in products from remote corners of India, , made by humble artisans without export licenses.
