Barcelona Cooperative Empowers Migrants Through Fashion

Top Manta: A Cooperative for Migrant Empowerment

• 💡 Top Manta is a Barcelona-based cooperative founded by former migrant street vendors.
• 🎯 It aims to transition these vendors into the formal economy by providing work contracts and new opportunities.

Fashion Collaboration and Skills

• 🧵 Models showcase clothing from a 10-piece upcycled capsule wardrobe designed by Tanya Marrsial.
• ✂️ Migrant workers are involved in cutting, stitching, and screen printing the garments, utilizing their traditional sewing techniques.
• 🧠 The collaboration fuses migrant workers' traditional know-how with modern design, addressing a gap in Spain's fast fashion industry.

Impact on Migrant Lives

• 🚀 Former vendors like Jibby Gabigag have found direction and purpose through Top Manta.
• 🤝 The cooperative has helped over 200 individuals obtain documentation, secure rights, and gain access to formal employment.

Addressing Migrant Challenges in Spain

• ⚠️ Spain faces a significant number of migrants in legal limbo, unable to work formally or secure residency.
• ✊ The founders of Top Manta started a street vendors union after a police raid, which evolved into the cooperative to advocate for migrant rights and overcome administrative obstacles.
• 📈 Top Manta provides a foothold in formal life, offering respect and recognition to individuals who were previously marginalized.