Brief description of the organisation/initiative
Started as a personal detox in 2019, Tombabe was initially an online thrift shop that quickly moved to a physical studio in Timișoara and further dreamed of bringing under the same roof local designers, music on vinyl, vintage and retro pieces that were worth stay with us, cool brands and anything that breathes and sweats urban. Tombabe quickly escalated into a t-shirt brand which promotes the Romanian language & urban slang. It now counts more than 100 different messages written on unisex plain white or black tees.
The #vorbeșteromânește t-shirts were at first a momentary fun: 3 premium white t-shirts locally printed for personal use with the most common mistakes in the Romanian language (I’d like // that // than not, just yes). After arriving on the Instagram page, friends started asking about them and that was how they became – exclusively through recommendations – a brand in their own right.
Tombabe started as a means to encourage people to talk and write correctly and use the Romanian language to render feelings and statements written on t-shirts.
Tombabe now wants to bring together in the virtual environment everything one feels and experiences live. The messages the brand thinks, the music they listen to, and the clothes they choose to put back into the contemporary urban circuit. All thought produced and, above all, photographed locally by artists who breathe at the same rate as the founders.
Challenge overview
Tombabe was launched one month before the pandemic. Therefore, it can easily be considered a pandemic business, which grew most likely because people needed to get in touch with the outside world more. They needed to make a statement online and connect with others through the messages written on the t-shirts.
Establishment of the organisation/initiative/enterprise
There was no interest in developing a entire brand. The t-shirts appeared as a personal necessity and grew incredibly fast through word-of-mouth powered by social media. The interest was so huge, so no one expected it. There was no other competitor on the market, so the demand, existed even no one knew, was high and the offer lacking entirely.
Management structure and governance
It started as a non-profit organisation that quickly grew into a for-profit company. It now counts two people (but it started as a one-woman show).
Principles of work, objectives and activities
First and foremost, Tombabe wishes to promote the Romanian language and encourage people to use the slang correctly. They communicate every aspect of their business with the clients. They ask for their opinion when launching a new message and give them the power to decide their direction, and they think this is actually why clients are so dedicated and connected to the Tombabe brand. This was Tombabe’s ultimate goal: customer satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and customer satisfaction.
Target groups
Because Tombabe also uses curse words (but written and used correctly) on their t-shirts, Tombabe tends to think that its main target is the 20-45 age group. But most of their clients find it interesting to give out t-shirts to their parents (who actually taught them to curse) and also dress their kids with funny messages. Therefore, Tombabe grew their community from newborns to 100+ age grandmothers and grandfathers.
Innovation
The main goal is to make the client happy. Engaging with them in every possible manner, preparing and packing each order manually, writing a personalised thank-you-card in each box, answering every question and e-mail, making jokes and being kinky and smart, at the same time. In this way, they communicate and share their clients’ experiences with every follower. This is what makes Tombabe different.
Key partners
It was a one-woman show at the beginning, from ideas, packing, producing, communicating, organising, cleaning and carrying. Now, Tombabe is a two-woman show, but there are also partners in the companies they work with for producing the t-shirts.
Impact and Evaluation
The first and most influential beneficiary aspect of the Tombabe company is the Romanian language and the Romanian culture. Tombabe made it cool to wear your language on your t-shirt and spread the word throughout the world for every Romanian that lives outside their home country and wants to find out who else out there understands what is written on his or her t-shirt.
Recommendations
There is the future perspective of expanding outside the Romanian borders because both women from Tombabe speak several languages and understand the cultural differences and slang. The team found a lack in this domain in other countries, as well. If there is one recommendation they could make, that would be to keep perseverance.
Lessons Learned
Being a creative initiative, one lesson from Tombabe could be everything can be turned into a business and that the world does not fall apart if you do not finish in time. But one must try to do their best.
References
Tombabe website.
Tombabe Instagram profile.
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