{"id":8566,"date":"2018-08-03T12:23:33","date_gmt":"2018-08-03T09:23:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/who-we-are\/"},"modified":"2026-02-13T22:33:48","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T19:33:48","slug":"who-we-are","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/who-we-are\/","title":{"rendered":"Who We Are"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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aslifilinta Do we even have the heart left to adorn ourselves?<\/strong><\/p>

Is there any other color left for us?<\/p>

And those women \u2014 who embroidered these motifs with their hands \u2014 who knows whether they served transformation through their pain.<\/p>

They will tell us when we will wear colors again. They will weave; the time is near. <\/p>

Until then, our mourning remains black, and red stains our hands.<\/p>

Still, hope depends on our becoming \u201cWe.\u201d<\/p>

5 March 2023<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Biz Collective Women\u2019s Cooperative was founded in July 2025 in Antakya, a city bearing the deepest scars of the February 6 earthquake, by seven women devoted to these lands. Joined later by dozens more women, this initiative is far more than a commercial enterprise; it stands as a tangible expression of rising again amid devastation, of solidarity, and of women\u2019s strength defying adversity.
The ancient cultural memory of Antakya, its production traditions, and women\u2019s labor form the very reason for B\u0130Z\u2019s existence. <\/span><\/p>

The cooperative\u2019s purpose is to transform women\u2019s labor into a visible, sustainable, and fair economic structure; to protect and strengthen local production and cultural heritage; and to build a new development model based on solidarity for women.<\/p>

B\u0130Z seeks to empower women both economically and socially through handicraft and artisanal production, agriculture and local goods, education and capacity development initiatives, collective design, and sales and marketing activities. By expanding the spirit of solidarity born in Antakya, B\u0130Z works toward a future in which women have a voice in knowledge, production, and decision-making mechanisms. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Our Founding Members<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t
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Asl\u0131 Filinta<\/h4>

I am Asl\u0131 Filinta.
Wherever I may be, my heart always beats for the inspiration rooted in Anatolian soil. My work brings cultural memory together with contemporary design and collective production. <\/p>

When the earthquake struck, I was not in T\u00fcrkiye. My first instinct was to board a plane to Antakya. At that very moment, a close family friend reminded me that my true form of service was my creativity. I then shared the message above on social media. That is how the story of \u201cB\u0130Z\u201d began. Black symbolized our shared mourning; blood red represented the responsibility we needed to assume. At that exact time, a collaboration invitation from L\u2019Or\u00e9al SkinCeuticals provided the opportunity to transform this intention into a tangible project. <\/p>

Immediately after the earthquake, I went to Antakya and stayed in tents. I researched women\u2019s cooperatives and discovered Cimem weaving \u2014 a craft on the verge of disappearing.<\/p>

Through the project involving 10,000 Cimem bags designed for L\u2019Or\u00e9al, approximately 40 tons of wheat stalk were upcycled; employment was provided for 350 women in the earthquake region; and 35 young women were trained in this craft. Conducted in cooperation with State Development Agencies, this process created a new foundation for community beyond awards and recognition. After the project concluded and our production team dispersed, we established B\u0130Z Collective Women\u2019s Cooperative in July 2025 together with the women we had produced alongside. <\/p>

I do not see production merely as an economic activity. Production is solidarity, continuity, and healing. Cultural heritage does not survive by preservation alone \u2014 it lives by being practiced and transformed. Sustainability cannot be reduced solely to materials; it is a holistic approach that considers soil, human beings, animals, and tradition together. Collective production is not only about economic independence; it is a bond rooted in Anatolia\u2019s memory, culture, and courage. <\/p>

B\u0130Z is a community of women entrepreneurs devoted to serving through creativity. Inspired by Anatolia, it seeks to make women\u2019s labor visible, to revive collective production, and to contribute to socio-economic development. It represents a stance that elevates craftsmanship, multiplies solidarity, and advocates for materials that nature can reclaim with ease and dignity. <\/p>

Today, with 7 founders and 55 volunteer women entrepreneurs, B\u0130Z is building a collective creation and production system in which not one individual, but soil, people, tradition, and the future prevail. Anatolia awakens the conscience recorded in our collective memory and reminds us of meaning. The awakening of collective consciousness \u2014 and its spread across the world \u2014 will emerge from these lands, God willing. <\/p>

As B\u0130Z uses what has been entrusted to us for the greater good, let us walk this path together. We are ready to move forward together on this path \u2014 and to challenge one another to grow along it. <\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\t <\/div>\n\n\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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S\u00fcheyla Hocao\u011flu<\/h4>

I am S\u00fcheyla Hocao\u011flu.
I was born on August 6, 1979, in the Tomarza district of Kayseri. We were there due to my father\u2019s teaching assignment, yet our roots were always in Hatay \u2014 our hearts always in our homeland.<\/p>

In 2014, I began working in Public Education. After the 2023 earthquake, I was shaken by the pain of losing my home and loved ones. In order to recover and hold on to life again, I returned to work and to production. <\/p>

I am a master instructor of the art of natural wheat stalk weaving (Cimem), a craft that was on the verge of being forgotten. In every stitch lies a memory; in every weave, a hope. By teaching this craft to women within the cooperative, I intend not only to preserve our culture, but also to contribute to their renewed strength. <\/p>

I know that I am no longer alone. We transform our pain into labor and become a powerful \u201cWe\u201d through collective production. We heal our wounds by creating shared value together. <\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\t <\/div>\n\n\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Y\u0131ld\u0131z Irmak G\u00fclery\u00fcz<\/h4>

I am Y\u0131ld\u0131z Irmak G\u00fclery\u00fcz.
I was born on July 15, 1980, in Antakya. In the February 6 earthquakes, I lost my 18-year-old daughter Nur, my husband, my two brothers, and many relatives.
The Biz Collective Women\u2019s Cooperative we founded became, for me, like breathing again. By taking part in the production and quality control team, I did not simply work \u2014 I transformed my pain into labor and my hope into creation. Through producing, I grow stronger. Through producing, I hold onto life once more. After a period in which my life was tested by immense loss, it regains meaning again. The cooperative is not merely a workplace; it has become a gateway to life woven with hope, solidarity, and the possibility of rising again. <\/p>

Within the production and quality control team, I rebuild not only products, but also my own strength, patience, and belief in the future. I heal through production. Every item I inspect, every task I complete, becomes my way of saying: \u201cI am still here. I am still strong.\u201d <\/p>

Within Biz Collective Cooperative, I exist through my labor. Through production, I return to life.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\t <\/div>\n\n\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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G\u00fcner Ku\u015f\u00e7u<\/h4>

I was born on the very first day of 1965 in Hatay. I grew up on this land, I loved here, and I built my home here. As a married mother of two, I wove my life with labor, patience, and love.
Then the earthquake came.
It shook not only our homes, but also our memories, our sense of order, and the feeling of life within us. We all scattered a little, grew weary a little, diminished a little. Yet we did not give up. Because we are women who know how to rise again.
The cooperative we founded is not merely a workplace; for us, it is a story of hope, solidarity, and beginning again. While producing handicrafts here, we are not only creating products \u2014 we are rebuilding ourselves. In Hatay, the spaces where we can socialize have diminished. But within this cooperative, we become strength for one another. We heal by speaking, by laughing, by producing. With every stitch, every effort, every creation, we grow stronger. <\/p>

Because we know:<\/p>

We are more beautiful together.<\/p>

We are stronger as we produce.<\/p>

And through solidarity, we can heal every wound.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\t <\/div>\n\n\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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T\u00fclay \u0130pek<\/h4>

I was born on September 7, 1984, in Sofular. I am married and a mother of three children. We lost our home in the earthquake. Thanks be to God, we did not lose our lives \u2014 but our lives changed completely. I lived in a tent for one and a half years. During those difficult days, beginning to produce within this cooperative became almost like therapy for me \u2014 a way of holding onto life again.
Within the cooperative, I weave Cimem as taught by our instructor S\u00fcheyla. In every stitch, I transform my pain into patience and my hope into labor. There were times when I learned that those who fall are often left alone. Yet throughout this process, I also met people with beautiful hearts and strong spirits, and I grew to love them all deeply. Through women\u2019s solidarity, we found strength. We supported one another. By producing together, we healed our wounds and became a powerful \u201cWe.\u201d <\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\t <\/div>\n\n\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Cevahir Sever<\/h4>

I am Cevahir Sever.
I was born on April 9, 1998, in Antakya. I grew up in this city. I gathered memories and built dreams here. Antakya was not just my hometown; it was the sound of my childhood and the imprint of my youth. <\/p>

Then February 6 happened.<\/p>

I lost many of my loved ones. Not only people \u2014 I lost the streets where I grew up and the corners filled with memories. I believed that my memories had been erased along with my city. We endured difficult days. We experienced pain, loss, and exhaustion \u2014 yet we did not give up. Because we chose to hold on. We emerged from the darkness stronger. <\/p>

After that, I did not leave my hometown. I chose to stay. I chose to heal through production and to become hope through work. I tried to build a new life from our ashes. I am grateful that I stayed.On our journey within B\u0130Z, I stand on the side that makes the labor of our producing women visible. I document their production processes through photographs and videos. I tell their stories through images. As part of the design and social media team, I carry the voice, the face, and the spirit of our cooperative outward. <\/p>

In short, I am the eye that tells you the story of our cooperative through photographs. For that reason, I strive to reflect the labor in every frame and the hope in every post exactly as it is \u2014 without embellishment. Because I know that handicraft, in its pure form, is already beautiful and valuable. <\/p>

Together with the remarkable women whose paths crossed mine within this cooperative, we walk a path. The name of that path is: We.<\/p>

This road may be stony, at times broken, at times muddy \u2014 but when we hold hands, it is so beautiful that I wish it would never end.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\t <\/div>\n\n\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Ay\u015fe Varer<\/h4>

I am Ay\u015fe Varer.
I was born on June 11, 1999, in Antakya. I am 26 years old and married. <\/p>

In the earthquake, I lost the home where I grew up. My family and I survived \u2014 and for that we gave thanks. Yet our memories and values remained within that house. The pain of losing our home, our neighborhood, and our city is still fresh within me. <\/p>

After February 6, we believed everything was over. Yet we found one another. Pain did not separate us; it brought us side by side. In order to hold on, we chose to produce \u2014 and on that path, the Biz Collective Cooperative was born.
Within the cooperative, I oversee accounting. I do not get lost among numbers; I strive to protect the value of labor. Every product recorded becomes, for me, part of a rebuilt life and a growing hope. <\/p>

Biz Collective Women\u2019s Cooperative is not merely a workplace for me; it is the embodiment of solidarity, shared healing, and renewed strength. Here, I learned to move beyond \u201cI\u201d and become B\u0130Z. And I know that as we produce together and heal together, life regains meaning. <\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\t <\/div>\n\n\t \n\t \t<\/div>\n\n\t \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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aslifilinta Do we even have the heart left to adorn ourselves? Is there any other color left for us? And those women \u2014 who embroidered these motifs with their hands \u2014 who knows whether they served transformation through their pain. They will tell us when…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-8566","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8566","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8566"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8566\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8662,"href":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8566\/revisions\/8662"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bizkolektif.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8566"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}