Barefoot

Barefoot is a Sri Lankan textile-design company and lifestyle retailer based in Colombo. Its work grew out of Barbara Sansoni’s involvement in a weaving program for economically disadvantaged Sri Lankan women in the 1960s. With the encouragement of Sister Good Counsel of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, Sansoni began contributing design and colour expertise to the program at the convent in Wattala in 1964. She and her then husband, Hildon Sansoni, subsequently established and financed four village weaving centres. Although the early initiative had a social-development dimension, Sansoni’s principal contribution was initially artistic: she developed the visual language, colour combinations, and textile designs used by the weavers. The products were first sold by Sansoni from her home. Over time, the activity developed into Barefoot, combining textile production, retail, design, and cultural programming. The company’s production network currently includes five weaving centres in Sri Lanka. These centres are run by the weavers, while the designs are supplied by Sansoni and the Barefoot design team. The resulting products are associated with handwoven construction, vivid colour, geometric and pictorial patterning, and a distinctly Sri Lankan design identity. Barefoot’s assortment extends beyond clothing to soft furnishings and other lifestyle textiles. Barefoot’s principal retail location is its flagship store on Galle Road in Colombo. Opened in the early 1970s, the site is arranged around a 1920s town house and combines several functions rather than operating solely as a shop. It sells Barefoot textiles alongside a selection of products from other Sri Lankan makers and includes a bookshop, café, and art gallery. The gallery has an earlier institutional history: the space operated as the Colombo Gallery from 1967 to 1971, reopened in 1991 as Gallery 706 Colombo, and adopted the name Barefoot Art Gallery in 1999. The retail network later expanded to Galle Fort, where a smaller store opened in 2004, and to the Old Colombo Dutch Hospital complex in Colombo, where another store opened in 2011. In addition to its own shops, Barefoot products are distributed through selected retailers in Australia, France, Japan, the Maldives, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Export activity accounts for approximately 35% of revenue according to the cited reference material, although the company’s total revenue and financial reporting are not provided. Barefoot therefore combines a local craft-production base with an international wholesale and retail presence, positioning itself at the intersection of ethical craft, textile design, Sri Lankan cultural expression, and contemporary lifestyle retail.

Barefoot’s origins lie in a weaving and skills-development program connected with the Sisters of the Good Shepherd convent in Wattala, Sri Lanka. In 1964, colourist, artist, and textile designer Barbara Sansoni became involved in the program after being encouraged by Sister Good Counsel. The initiative taught weaving to young Sri Lankan women living in poverty. Sansoni initially concentrated on the aesthetic side of the work, applying her knowledge of colour, pattern, and textile design to the material produced by the weavers. Sansoni and her then husband, Hildon Sansoni, established and financed four village weaving centres. Sansoni began selling the weavers’ products from her home, creating the commercial foundation for what became Barefoot. The enterprise subsequently developed from a home-based outlet into a broader design and retail operation. Its model retained a connection to village weaving while adding a distinctive design language created by Sansoni and later by the Barefoot design team. The company’s Colombo flagship store opened on Galle Road in the early 1970s. The premises are centred on a 1920s town house and evolved into a mixed cultural and commercial destination. In addition to selling Barefoot’s own textiles and other selected Sri Lankan products, the site contains a bookshop, café, and art gallery. The gallery’s history predates its current identity. It was known as the Colombo Gallery between 1967 and 1971, reopened in 1991 under the name Gallery 706 Colombo, and was renamed Barefoot Art Gallery in 1999. Barefoot’s production system expanded to five weaving centres in Sri Lanka. These centres are run by the weavers, while Sansoni and the company’s design team provide the designs. This arrangement links the brand’s retail output to a distributed craft-production network rather than a single factory. The company’s products include clothing and soft furnishings, and its stores also carry a wider range of selected local products. The physical retail network expanded beyond the Galle Road location. A smaller shop opened in Galle Fort in 2004, followed by a store in the Old Colombo Dutch Hospital complex in 2011. Barefoot also developed an export and international distribution business. Its products became available through selected retailers in Australia, France, Japan, the Maldives, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The cited reference states that exports represented approximately 35% of revenue, but provides no total revenue figure or reporting period. As described in the available reference material, Barefoot remains an active Sri Lankan textile-design and retail company. Its identity rests on the combination of handwoven production, vivid and recognisable textile design, support for village weaving centres, and a flagship retail environment that incorporates books, food, art, and other local products. The available sources do not establish a precise legal founding year, corporate ownership structure, current executive roster, or official website.

• 2011

  Old Colombo Dutch Hospital store opens

  [1]Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org

  A further Barefoot store opened in the Old Colombo Dutch Hospital complex.

• 2004

  Galle Fort store opens

  [1]Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org

  Barefoot expanded its physical retail presence with a smaller store in Galle Fort.

• 1999

  Gallery renamed Barefoot Art Gallery

  [1]Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org

  The gallery adopted its current name, Barefoot Art Gallery.

• 1991

  Gallery 706 Colombo reopens

  [1]Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org

  The gallery space reopened under the name Gallery 706 Colombo.

• 1970

  Galle Road flagship store opens

  [1]Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org

  Barefoot’s flagship store opened on Galle Road in Colombo in the early 1970s, in a group of buildings centred on a 1920s town house.

• 1967

  Colombo Gallery period begins

  [1]Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org

  The gallery space later incorporated into the Barefoot flagship site was known as the Colombo Gallery from 1967 to 1971.

• 1964

  Barbara Sansoni joins the Wattala weaving program

  [1]Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org

  Barbara Sansoni became involved in a program associated with the Sisters of the Good Shepherd that taught weaving to economically disadvantaged young women in Wattala, Sri Lanka.

• Village weaving centres established

  [1]Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org

  Barbara and Hildon Sansoni established and financed four village weaving centres, while Sansoni contributed design direction and began selling the resulting products from her home.

A design-led Sri Lankan craft and lifestyle brand that combines handwoven textiles, women-led village weaving centres, cultural retail, and selected locally made goods.

• Apparel

  Handwoven clothing

  Barefoot’s clothing is produced within its Sri Lankan weaving network and reflects the brand’s emphasis on colour, pattern, and handwoven construction. Designs are associated with Barbara Sansoni and the Barefoot design team, while weaving centres are run by the participating weavers.

• Home textiles

  Soft furnishings

  Soft furnishings form a major part of Barefoot’s textile assortment. The range extends the company’s handwoven and pattern-led design approach into household and decorative applications, complementing its clothing and broader lifestyle products.

• Lifestyle retail

  Selected Sri Lankan products

  Barefoot’s stores sell a curated selection of products made by other Sri Lankan producers in addition to the company’s own textiles. This supports the flagship store’s role as a broader local-design and cultural retail destination.

• Books and cultural goods

  Books

  The Galle Road flagship includes a bookshop, adding publishing and cultural merchandise to the store’s textile and lifestyle offer.

1. 1Barefoot (retailer)en.wikipedia.org