Behind every Divine Imports product is a story. A story of family, craftsmanship, community and the beautiful island of Bali.
When you receive a Divine Imports parcel, you might see a beautiful wooden sculpture, a handcrafted dreamcatcher or a piece of Balinese artwork.
But what you might not see is the journey that product has taken to reach your home.
The families who have spent years perfecting their craft. The small businesses that help bring everything together. The hours spent sourcing, designing and checking every little detail. And the journey across the ocean before your parcel finally arrives at your doorstep.
Today, I want to take you behind the scenes of Divine Imports and introduce you to some of the wonderful people who make our little business possible.
Because every single order supports so much more than you might realise.
Where It All Began: A Family Connection
My love for Bali began in 2016, when I first visited the island and completely fell in love with its people, culture and natural beauty.
It was also around this time that I first met some of the artisans I still work with today.
When I returned to Bali in 2020, my family and I were furnishing our new home. We purchased lots of beautiful Balinese carvings, including Buddha sculptures and paintings, from these very same artisans.
Little did I know that a few years later, I would be returning to them with a completely different purpose.
When I decided to start Divine Imports, it just felt right to work with the people I already knew and trusted.
These weren't strangers I'd found through an online wholesale catalogue. They were people whose craftsmanship I had admired for years, whose products were already part of my family home and whose stories I wanted to share with others.
That personal connection is something I never want to lose as Divine Imports grows.
Meet the Artisans Behind Our Carvings
One of the things I love most about Bali is the incredible sense of community.
Many of the artisans we work with have learned their craft from previous generations. Skills and techniques are passed down through families, with different people specialising in particular carvings.
For example, one family member might be especially skilled at carving Laughing Buddhas, while another specialises in a completely different design.
It's not simply a case of producing as many identical products as possible.
It's a craft that takes patience, knowledge and years of experience.
We currently work with two small family businesses for our wooden carvings.
One of these is run by a lovely man called Made, who works alongside a few of his friends and family.
When you visit their workshops, you really get a sense of how closely connected everyone is. The wider village often feels like one big family, with people sharing their skills, supporting one another and working together.
This is one of the reasons I love sourcing our products directly from Bali.
I get to meet the people behind the pieces, see where they're made and understand the work that goes into them.
And when you purchase one of our carvings, you're supporting these small businesses and helping create continued demand for their craftsmanship.
Why We Choose Small Family Businesses
One of the most important things to me when building Divine Imports was knowing where our products came from.
I didn't want to simply order mass-produced décor from a large factory without knowing who had made it or under what conditions.
I wanted to build genuine relationships with the people creating our products.
By working directly with small family-run businesses, I can visit their workshops, speak to the artisans and see their working environment for myself.
And while I can't speak for every factory or every business in Bali, I can tell you why choosing to work with these particular families means so much to me.
When I place a container order, the gratitude I receive is something I'll never forget.
The smiles, the excitement, and the moments when the artisans pray over and bless the payment.
It is incredibly humbling. Their average monthly wage is £100 a MONTH. Our order from Divine Imports is more than their yearly wage.
I can't put an exact figure on the financial impact our orders have on each family, but I know how much these relationships mean to me, and seeing their reactions makes me even more determined to keep growing Divine Imports.
Because the more we grow, the more opportunities we have to continue working with these wonderful people.
And that is something I am incredibly proud of.
Every Product Is Personally Sourced and Checked
Something you might not know about Divine Imports is just how involved I am in sourcing our products.
I don't simply choose items from a catalogue and wait for them to arrive in the UK.
I travel around Bali, visit workshops, meet artisans, look at different designs and carefully select the pieces I want to bring into our collection.
I also work directly with the artisans on new designs.
In fact, three of our products were designed by me: our Linked Hearts, Heart Hands and Double Heart sculptures.
Seeing an idea in my head become a beautiful handcrafted piece is one of my favourite parts of running Divine Imports.
But the work doesn't stop once the products have been made.
I also check the finished pieces, inspect samples and make sure I'm happy with the quality before anything is packed for shipping.
Because if I'm going to put the Divine Imports name on something, I want to know that it's something I would be happy to have in my own home.
It's Not Just the Carvers We Work With
Something that often gets overlooked is how many different people are involved in bringing one product to life.
Our wooden carvings are just one part of the story.
We also work with a local Balinese artist who creates our paintings, and a small family of three who take care of the framing.
Our dreamcatchers are made by another small local business. And I have to share one of my favourite little memories from visiting them! The last time I was there, they had the cutest family kitten wandering around. They were also teaching some of the younger girls how to weave the dreamcatchers.
It was such a lovely moment to witness.
Watching the next generation learn these skills reminded me that these products are so much more than just home accessories.
They're part of a craft and tradition that continues to be shared within families and communities.
It's those little moments that make visiting our suppliers so special.
Even Our Packaging Supports Local Businesses
The support doesn't stop once the products have been made.
All of our packaging is prepared in Bali, and we work with another small local business to handle our packaging and shipping.
We also use a separate local printing company for the thank-you cards you find inside your parcels and the stickers on our boxes.
And when I say local, I really mean local!
The printing company was actually a little family-run shack on the same road as where I lived in Ubud.
I love that something as simple as a thank-you card can create another opportunity to support a small Balinese business.
It's easy to focus on the main product, but there are so many little things that go into getting an order ready.
The carving, the painting, the framing, the printing, the packaging and the shipping.
Each part of that process involves real people and their livelihoods.
And whenever possible, I want Divine Imports to support the local community throughout that entire journey.
The Final Checks Before Our Products Leave Bali
Once our products have been crafted, it's time to prepare everything for the journey to the UK.
This is another part of the process that I'm very hands-on with.
Before the team begins packing an entire order, we carefully pack one of each product first.
I then check everything to make sure I'm happy with how the items are protected and presented.
Once I've approved the packaging, the team can get on with preparing the rest of the order.
And then comes shipment day!
I'm usually in Bali when our container is being packed, so I get to see everything being carefully loaded and prepared for its journey.
It's always such an exciting moment.
After months of planning, sourcing, designing and waiting for everything to be handcrafted, seeing all those products ready to leave Bali feels like a huge milestone.
Our most recent container took around seven months to prepare.
It was definitely a test of patience!
But we didn't want to rush the artisans or compromise on the quality of the products.
Handcrafted pieces take time, and sometimes that means waiting a little longer than originally planned.
Once our container leaves Bali, it usually takes around four to six weeks to reach the UK by sea.
And then the next exciting chapter begins.
From Their Hands to Your Home
When our products finally arrive in the UK, there's something so special about knowing the journey they've been on.
A piece that started in a small workshop in Bali is now ready to become part of somebody's home thousands of miles away.
And when I see customer photographs of our products sitting on a shelf, decorating a living room or being given as a thoughtful gift, it genuinely makes me so happy.
Because I know the people behind those pieces.
I know the workshops they came from.
I know the time, care and effort that went into making them.
And I know how much it means to the small businesses we work with when another order comes through.
That is what makes Divine Imports so special to me.
Thank You for Being Part of Their Story
I started Divine Imports because I wanted to share my love for Bali and its beautiful craftsmanship with the rest of the world.
But as the business grows, I've realised that it's about so much more than selling home décor.
It's about the relationships we've built, the people we work with and the opportunities we can create by choosing to support small businesses.
From Made and his family to our painters, framers, dreamcatcher makers, printers and packaging team, there are so many wonderful people behind Divine Imports.
And every time you choose to shop with us, you're helping us continue working with them.
So the next time you open a Divine Imports parcel, I hope you'll remember that the beautiful piece inside has a story of its own.
A story that began in Bali, was brought to life by skilled hands and has now found its way into your home.
Thank you for being part of that journey. 🤎
With love,
Yasmin
Founder, Divine Imports