{"id":64,"date":"2026-09-08T04:47:01","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T04:47:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modae.shop\/historia\/"},"modified":"2026-09-23T18:37:51","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T18:37:51","slug":"historia","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/modae.shop\/en\/historia\/","title":{"rendered":"Historia"},"content":{"rendered":"
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OUR STORY & PHILOSOPHY \u00b7 EST. 2021<\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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FROM OUR ORIGIN CAME
OUR PURPOSE.<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\u201cNever forget your people.\u201d<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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THE ORIGIN<\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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IT ALL BEGAN BY RETURNING TO THE ROOT<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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In 2021, one uncertain night revealed an idea that could bring together our Otom\u00ed roots, garments made from recycled materials and collaboration with artisans from our community. That is how Ojitos Negros began.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Before the brand, there was a transformation<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Ojitos Negros didn\u2019t begin as a trend, nor with the intention of building a fashion brand.<\/p>

His story began years earlier, when Sergio Pedraza received a cancer diagnosis that changed the way he looked at life. After almost a year of treatment, he understood that surviving wasn\u2019t enough: he wanted to find a purpose and build something capable of leaving a mark on other people.<\/p>

That experience raised a question that would stay with him: What can I do with my story to create something valuable for others?<\/em><\/p>

Some time later, his work at a solar energy company strengthened an environmental awareness that was already in him. For Sergio, the relationship with nature was not a new concept; it was part of a much deeper inheritance.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Returning to the origin<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Sergio is the son of Otom\u00ed parents from San Pedro Arriba, in Temoaya, State of Mexico. He grew up closely connected to his community, to nature and to artisanal work.<\/p>

Among his father\u2019s teachings, one phrase stayed with him: \u201cNever forget your people.\u201d<\/em> For a long time those words seemed like simple advice. Years later they would become the direction of a brand.<\/p>

In 2021, in the middle of the pandemic, Sergio lost his job. Opportunities were scarce and uncertainty seemed to close every path. He looked for alternatives outside his world and even considered importing products from other countries, but no idea felt connected to his own story.<\/p>

Until one night, as he wondered what to do, a phrase came to him clearly: Eco-friendly hand-embroidered tees.<\/strong><\/p>

In that moment he understood that the answer he was looking for didn\u2019t have to come from somewhere else. It was in his roots.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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The first stitches<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Sergio contacted one of the suppliers he had met while working in the environmental sector and selected finished tees made from recycled materials. He then took the first samples to his community.<\/p>

The project began with two families. Sergio gave the garments to the artisans so they could experiment with them, test the fabric and bring in their knowledge, sensibility and creativity.<\/p>

When he came back and saw the first embroidery, he knew the idea could become something bigger.<\/p>

It was never simply about placing a handcrafted element on a tee. Every piece was born where a lower-impact garment met a cultural identity and the hands of women who had inherited their knowledge across generations.<\/p>

Over time, the project came to work with more than twenty families, mostly Otom\u00ed women artisans. In the middle of the pandemic, that collaboration also meant work and income outside the cities. That is how Ojitos Negros began.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Collaborate, don\u2019t appropriate<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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From the beginning we understood that craft should not be used as decoration, nor reduced to a production cost. Artisans bring knowledge, interpretation and sensibility to every piece of embroidery. That is why we recognise them as co-authors<\/strong> of the pieces they take part in.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Our relationship is built on clear agreements, fair pay, mutual respect and one essential practice: we never haggle over the value of their work.<\/strong><\/p>

We call this philosophy Co-authorship Value<\/strong>. Because when a piece is the result of several hands, the recognition and the value it creates must be shared too.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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What Ojitos Negros means<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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While searching for a name, Sergio returned once again to his mother tongue. In the Otom\u00ed language he found an expression linking the ideas of \u201ceyes\u201d and \u201cblack\u201d. From that encounter came the name Ojitos Negros.<\/p>

But its meaning grew alongside the brand. Eyes don\u2019t only represent a feature shared by many people in our community; they also stand for a way of looking inward, recognising who we are and remembering where we come from.<\/p>

Ojitos Negros became an invitation to return to your origin and carry it with pride.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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A story between Mexico and the United States<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The pandemic temporarily halted the brand\u2019s growth. Soon after, Sergio moved to New Jersey in search of new opportunities. Ojitos Negros was paused, but never abandoned.<\/p>

While Sergio worked and learned how businesses are built in the United States, he began developing other ideas. Yet something unexpected happened: Ojitos Negros pieces kept finding people who wanted them. The brand was still alive.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Sergio decided to return to the project, took pilot pieces to the United States and began sharing his story again. The community\u2019s response confirmed that Ojitos Negros could cross borders without letting go of its roots.<\/p>

Today we are a brand built between Mexico and the United States: we collaborate with artisans from our community, choose garments made from recycled materials and create designs that connect our cultural identity with the present.<\/p>

Our story continues.<\/strong> Ojitos Negros wasn\u2019t born to reproduce the past, nor to turn culture into a trend. It was born to give it continuity.<\/p>

Every piece brings together three commitments: the value of artisanal work, a more conscious choice of materials, and the economic and creative recognition of the artisans who take part as co-authors.<\/p>

Whoever chooses an Ojitos Negros garment doesn\u2019t just wear a design. They carry a story that began in an Otom\u00ed community, found a new path in the middle of uncertainty, and today seeks to connect our roots with the world.<\/p>

History changes. Our identity remains.<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\u201cA hero isn\u2019t defined by the wounds they go through, but by the decision to get up every day.\u201d<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Sergio Pedraza<\/strong>
Founder of Ojitos Negros M\u2019ODA Ecol\u00f3gica \u00b7 Speaker on cultural identity and business with purpose.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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THE OTOM\u00cd COMMUNITY<\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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FACES, HANDS AND STORIES.<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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WHO THEY ARE<\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The Otom\u00ed people \u2014also known as H\u00f1\u00e4h\u00f1u\u2014 are one of the oldest indigenous peoples in central Mexico. Women and men of all ages keep textile knowledge alive, passed down through generations.<\/p>

They work with techniques such as Tenango embroidery, cross-stitch and the making of Otom\u00ed rugs. Each process calls for different tools, skills and timeframes. Although they use hoops to hold and tension the textile, the work is done by hand, without modern machinery.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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HOW THEY WORK<\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Birds, deer, flowers and fretwork are part of a visual language born of the land, of memory and of imagination. Today that knowledge also makes it possible to interpret modern, contemporary and urban designs.<\/p>

Every piece calls for patience, precision and sensibility. Depending on its size, technique and complexity, a piece of embroidery can take days or even weeks of meticulous work.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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WHAT IT MEANS<\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Embroidering is not only decorating. It is turning memories, emotions and ideas into shapes and colours. Each person leaves in the piece something of what they observe, imagine or feel while creating it.<\/p>

When you wear one of these pieces, you don\u2019t only wear a design: you wear a personal expression that shares a root and carries the feeling of whoever created it.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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M'ODA \u00b7 B'ODA<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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= OJOS NEGROS<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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da \u2192 eyes    mb’ot’i \u2192 black.<\/strong> We chose M\u2019ODA for its visual and sound connection with the word for fashion. Later we discovered a deeper meaning: Ojitos Negros. Today the name honours the artisans who embroider every piece and the feature that inspired our identity.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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OUR PHILOSOPHY<\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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M\u2019ODA WITH CULTURAL IDENTITY<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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We believe a garment can do more than dress you: it can express who you are, honour your origin and carry a story into the future. Our philosophy begins with a simple decision: to give value to what deserves to last.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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FAST FASHION<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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