In a world racing toward automation, Kirubel Alebachew chooses to slow it down. The Ethiopian designer behind the brand DRIቶ, a name that speaks to rebirth, bringing something once disregarded back to life, is a self-taught bag designer grounded in the discipline of ‘making by hand’.
Just under two years in, he’s built something worth noticing. Every bag is hand-stitched, a process that demands patience and precision. It’s not about speed. It’s about care. Every stitch matters, every detail is deliberate.
His designs come from everyday Ethiopian life, its rhythms, colors, and practicality. Nothing feels forced. The balance between function and form is clean and considered. Bags that feel like yours before you even pick them up.
What sets DRIቶ apart is honesty. Kirubel
didn’t train for this. He learned by doing, repeating, getting it wrong, then right.
That shows in the work.
He’s not chasing trends. He watches, adapts, but stays rooted in his own approach, shaped by culture, utility, and instinct.
“The first time I knew this is something I could do was when someone paid for a bag I had made.”
To carry a DRIቶ bag is to carry time, effort, and a story stitched by hand, quite literally.