Organising a sports event is a golden opportunity to bring talented local artists into the spotlight. As exemplified at the Moka Tennis Open, with wooden medals and trophies bearing Grafitag Ltd’s mark, a local company under the label of Made in Moris. Meet the pair of enthusiasts.
The faces behind Grafitag are none other than Emilie Minator and Kewin Kotadoo. She’s a fashion designer. He’s a graphic designer. Both united by a common passion. “I created the company in 2013 as part of my course,” explains Kewin. Two years later, Emilie joined him. Together, they began making canvas bags and wallets. Such good fortune! At the time, plastic had just been banned across the island. While Emily keeps up with the latest trends, Kewin designs the patterns. Soon, they teamed up; it was a match made in heaven.
Though they were ill-equipped at first, their creativity led the way: an improvised structure… and YouTube. And it works perfectly! Grafitag is slowly but surely making a name for itself, both on the market and on Facebook. “We identified a niche in the collector’s items market. This is what businesses are looking for,” they explain. As it happens, they were right: ENL took notice of them and a collaboration with the Moka Smart City ensued.
A real work of craftsmanship
Since then, Emilie and Kewin have evolved. So, have their methods. When they received the order a few weeks before the Moka Tennis Open, they came up with the idea of wooden trophies. Why not, after all… In just a few days, Emilie had a burst of inspiration and Kewin created the 3D image. The organisers were thrilled and the artisans set right to work. “This is when we realised the magnitude of the task. Wooden trophies aren’t exactly ordinary! We had never created anything of the sort.”
But not only trophies. They made medals, too. In total, no less than 376 pieces were crafted in their home studio, in Quatre Bornes: “We worked round the clock for two weeks!” And for good reason: winners, finalists and mere participants in the tournament were presented with different model. In order words, customised medals. A work of fine craftsmanship duly acknowledged by Mikaël Le Luron, Head of Marketing at ENL Property: “All the participants walked away with a Mauritian work of art that will always remind them of this spectacular tournament.”
Emilie and Kewin are already looking forward to plugging in their woodcutting machines again. “Watching our product come to life is an inexplicable feeling. Moreover, each satisfied client marks a milestone for us. It’s a moment of pride, encouragement, a real stepping stone.” Emilie adds: “I can’t reveal much, but we have some great collaborations with the Moka Smart City in the pipeline.”