WHO WE ARE

Do we break apart or come together? 

It's an odd time to be starting a business. But we aren't really a business - at least not in the way business is defined these days. And we aren't just starting. To the world Talaya has just appeared, brand new.  But the truth is, like everything else on earth, Talaya was born in a thousand moments, fruit of the countless experiences of countless people - our families, our friends, our communities and ourselves. Rooted in connection and deep love of nature, people, home and craft, Talaya is the inevitable interweaving of our cultures, our history, our dreams and our lives. 

We are here to reweave, in whatever small ways we can, what was never meant to be separated, to reconcile false opposites. Our name blends the Sanskrit harita (nature) and alaya (home).  Intention and exploration are the heart of everything we do. We stand for the freedom to live as ourselves, and insist this true freedom is not in opposition to community and care for one another, but the natural product of it.

Can business exist to give rather than take? We think so. We think it must. We believe businesses are not people, but two people together are company and magic happens when people come together.  We're two people who see the ways modern life sometimes prioritizes what doesn't matter over what does, and hope to contribute to finding a different way.  We turn things on their heads, ask why and how things can be better. We believe the only thing that matters is care, and belonging is the only true birthright any of us have. 

What if a business measured success in its service, its values, its humanity? What if the things we made and owned freed us to explore, express ourselves, and live our values? What if they evolved with us, and evolved our relationship with the world around us in the process?

Lofty questions for a tiny two-person tile company. But we aren’t a tile company. Not really.

We sat on this idea for 5 years. After all, does the world really need another maker of things to consume? Certainly not.  But it does need askers of questions, those willing to explore new ways (and revive old ones) that bring us back home to ourselves and one another. We didn't set out to sell tiles.  We're here to explore, experiment and contribute to a world everyone feels at home in - and we hope you'll join us on the journey.  

It's an odd time to start a business to be sure, but it's the right moment to start this.

Questioning everything.  Taking nothing for granted.  Being brave enough to follow where the answers lead.

Mara & Kyle