When Hanna Bassil founded the fashion brand Jdeed in 2021, he had a mission in mind: representing Palestine. It’s a personal goal for him, as the son of two Palestinian refugees who sought sanctuary in Jordan during wartime. Growing up between Amman and London, Bassil has grappled with diaspora and found a meaningful connection to his roots through fashion.
Jdeed is a way for Bassil to honour his heritage and support people currently living in Palestinian refugee camps. At this time, 35 women in the Jerash Gaza Camp for Palestinian Refugees in Jordan are employed under the Jdeed brand, creating hand-embroidered garments completed with their names sewn onto the exterior. Each piece of clothing contributes to Bassil’s larger vision of celebrating Palestinian heritage at this critical time in history.
“I felt the frustration of living abroad, not being able to help Palestinians in their daily struggles and losing touch with my origins. Through Jdeed, I spent more time than I ever did before learning about our history and culture, connecting with and talking to creatives in and around Palestine and sharing our story with the world.” – Hanna Bassil, founder of Jdeed
After a successful first season launch, Jdeed is back with a second collection of clothing that was manufactured locally in Jordan. The collection is vibrant, with its bright colour palette, and heritage-driven, including recognizable symbols of Palestinian culture as well as a unique digital painting by a Palestinian calligraphist on the designs. With this second season, Jdeed has, once again, brought Palestinian creative talent to the doorstep of an international market with comfortable ready-to-wear clothing for men and women.
Read GRAZIA’s exclusive interview with Jdeed’s founder Hanna Bassil below to learn more about the conception and mission of Jdeed and browse the brand’s second season here.
Grazia middle east’s Exclusive interview with Hanna bassil, founder of jdeed
Jdeed launched in 2021, but when did you personally decide that this was an important brand for you to create? What factors drove this decision?
Hanna Bassil: “Being surrounded by brands (both fashion and other) driven by the desire to make an impact and social good, I was inspired to do something similar with Jdeed. The planning and research started around 2019 when I was exploring ideas to bridge the gap between Palestinian creatives and the Western World.
The main factor that drove my decision to launch Jdeed was wanting to change the narrative in the media that skewed heavily against Palestinians, who are living in extremely tough conditions under an occupation inside of Palestine or as refugees around the world.
I wanted Jdeed to encourage people to look at Palestinians from a ‘New’ lens, one focused on culture, art, embroidery, photography, calligraphy and all the amazing talent inside the region. Palestinians, like everyone else, want to express themselves and have their art seen by the world, so I’m using Jdeed as a platform for their creativity.”
Where did your enthusiasm for fashion come from?
HB: “I developed an interest in fashion during my years spent studying the crossover between fashion and marketing, where I grew an appreciation for the power of fashion as a form of expression and identity.
My enthusiasm for Jdeed came out of my love of embroidery, symmetry, and patterns. When I was young, visiting my grandparents, I found myself drawn to the patterns on the pillow covers my grandmother would embroider, and I’d curiously run my finger over them and find comfort in the designs that were easy on the eye.
Putting the two together – I set a plan to showcase these patterns, as well as other key elements of our culture, in a fresh way to attract a larger audience. I was committed to telling a story through fashion, one that challenges people to appreciate our rich heritage while breaking down any misconceptions they may have had in the past.”
Could you give us a bit of insight into the creative process behind the collection? For example, how did you select the designs?
HB: “I wanted to design something that Middle Easterners will enjoy wearing and be proud to represent, which the Western World will simultaneously be drawn to and want to learn more about.
For the Middle East, it’s like saying, ‘If you know, you know,’ when looking at the patterns I’ve extracted from the traditional Keffiyeh, the map of Palestine subtly printed all over a camo-style hoodie and iconic symbols such as the political cartoon of Handala, the Key of Return and the Watermelon on other pieces. I’ve put a modern twist on these elements in the hopes that they remain timeless and honour the story of how they originated.
For those who may not know what these elements are, I wanted them to look at the brand as something they would wear, and when they find out the inspiration behind the collection as well as Jdeed’s mission statement, they’ll hopefully buy into it all together while learning about our culture!”
What do you consider to be one of the most exciting or fulfilling parts of running Jdeed?
HB: “Working closely with some amazing women in the Jerash Gaza Camp for Palestinian Refugees in Jordan has been the most fulfilling. While Jdeed draws inspiration from Palestinian and Middle Eastern heritage, the core mission statement from the start has been to support Palestinian Refugees in Jordan and find ways to give back.
The first way was by giving 35 women (and counting) a canvas to showcase their impressive and iconic hand-embroidery skills to the world. They embroider and sign their names on a label that is proudly displayed on the outside of all our pieces.
Secondly, we take 10% of all proceeds and give back to the camp based on their needs. We’ve built 3 zinko rooftops for families who needed to close off parts of their homes, helped a young woman complete her university studies and offered year-round aid in the form of gas oil coupons, supermarket coupons, paying pharmacy bills and multiple rounds of winter donations during the cold season.
On a personal level, which is something that has been echoed by many guests on GRAZIA ME’s ‘Preserving Palestine,’ I used Jdeed to reconnect to my roots. I felt the frustration of living abroad, not being able to help Palestinians in their daily struggles and losing touch with my origins. Through Jdeed, I spent more time than I ever did before learning about our history and culture, connecting with and talking to creatives in and around Palestine and sharing our story with the world.”
What are some of the hurdles you’ve had to overcome while launching the brand?
HB: “The most important hurdle was to tell creative stories around important elements of Palestinian culture while respecting the narrative.
There are a lot of negative connotations associated with certain elements, such as the Keffiyeh scarf, so the challenge was to showcase each element (the fishnet pattern, the trade route pattern and the olive tree branches) in a contemporary way, explaining the importance of each element and their origin story.
Another hurdle is moving the full production locally to Jordan, which was one of my long-term goals. I’ve successfully launched the second season, which was fully manufactured in Jordan, and it was a big step for me to stay true to the brand’s mission statement.”
What do you have in mind for the future of the brand?
HB: “The next step is to do even more work with the women in the Gaza Camp. The labels they’ve designed have been received well by everyone who bought into the brand and I want to give them an even bigger canvas to showcase their creativity. From my visits to the Gaza Camp and the conversations I’ve had with these incredible women, they are keen on getting more involved and I’m committed to supporting them.
The long-term vision is to provide a space in the camp with all the necessary resources where these women (and anyone else) can practice their embroidery and even teach the next generation.”
