By Rahemma Azwar on November 11, 2021
The following letters to Dia Guild and its co-founders were compiled in honor of the brand’s one year anniversary. They are presented in the order of each intern’s tenure at Dia.
Su Fey:
“Working at Dia was very holistic, and I had the chance to do tasks ranging from business logistics to writing articles on topics I was interested in, which was exciting! Kylie, Aisha, and Alia were always filled with so much drive and were happy to share their experiences with me. They really taught me the value of perspective in approaching any situation, as well as of having an openness/growth mindset in an inclusive environment.
Dia and their ethos gave me a deeper understanding of the effort behind crafts, and knowledge of their significance. Looking forward, I can’t wait to see what hidden gems may feature on the platform. With Dia being an insider’s guide to Southeast Asian artisanship, I want to see them flourish, and I hope that the cultures and talents of our region can be shared with the world.”
Megan:
“Although my internship with Dia ended a few months ago, it has been a defining moment for me. It made me realize that I wanted to work for a fashion company with a brand vision and mission that I could relate to. Seeing as it was my first internship at an online fashion start-up, I learnt a lot about working remotely in addition to what goes behind running an online retailing platform.
Seeing Dia invited to represent Southeast Asian fashion in one of the ‘Big Four’ fashion capitals last month at London Craft Week made me feel extremely proud of my heritage and all the work the current team put in to pull off the event. I’m really excited to see what’s in store for Dia in the coming year and I hope that they will be able to bring appreciation for heritage crafts to a more global audience.”
Wathiqah:
“Working with Dia has been an honor and extremely purposeful. Dia has added to my work experience and pushed me toward my goal of being creatively-driven, as I had the opportunity to have a taste of everything, all the way from operations to content creation. I also learned that to do anything in life, one needs to approach it with purpose.
With Dia, I’ve definitely ventured out of my comfort zone, but what made me confident to take up that challenge was my colleagues’ honest and comforting feedback. The community aspects of Dia are super strong, even amongst the team, and I value the privilege to have worked with everyone a lot. I can't wait to see Dia expand to bigger and greater things!”
Emma:
“The opportunity to work with Dia honestly fell into my lap unexpectedly after seeing my friends, Megan and Su Fey, work for them. I thought I’d give it a try to see if I could secure an internship and thankfully, I did! Soon I started joining their weekly calls and giving my own input into ideas for the company.
These past few months have been so eye opening to me that I don’t think I’d be able to write it all in a letter. Dia has shown me the incredibly rich arts and cultural scene we have not only in Malaysia, but in our ASEAN neighbours too. They’ve given me the chance to expand my horizons, and seeing mine and other Asian identities highlighted and praised for their fashion is incredibly empowering, especially because I aim to work in the fashion industry post-graduation. Dia has taught me to always be grounded in what I do, and that intentions in all aspects of life are necessary for us to live a fulfilling one."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rahemma is Dia’s intern and a Journalism student at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. She has her own jewelry business, runs a blog analyzing the fashion industry, and started a sex education NGO to support Malaysian youth. Her interests include creating art, sociopolitical theory, literature, and rollerskating on the weekends.
