It all began with an encounter in Ladakh
CHANGTANGI was born from an encounter — as most things in the world are. In 2009, Anton Förster travelled to Ladakh, in the northern Indian Himalayas, where the vast and barren high plateau of Changthang stretches deep beyond the Tibetan border. There, at over 3,500 metres above sea level, he met Karma Tamphel and later on his large nomadic family.
As a young man, Karma chose to leave his nomadic life behind and learn the ancient art of weaving. He went on to teach this craft to others — and to trade in what his family had always carried with them: the soft gold of the Himalayas. Cashmere. And so Karma became a pashmina merchant.
The Changtangi goat is remarkable. Living at extreme altitude, it has developed one of the finest, densest undercoats in the animal kingdom — a natural shield against the brutal Himalayan winters, and the source of the world's most prized cashmere fiber: Pashmina.*
Building a bridge — from the Himalayas to your hands
The nomadic families of Changthang roam with their herds through a landscape so vast, so still, and so otherworldly that it feels almost timeless. They live in tents, wear heavy simple clothing, cook with yak dung, and trade their goods for rice, tea, and fuel. In this simplicity lies an infinite richness — a life lived entirely in harmony with nature, at the roof of the world.
When Anton first encountered this life, something shifted. A desire grew — not to photograph it, not to romanticize it, but to make it truly tangible. To build a connection that could be felt. Through something you could hold in your hands. A cashmere scarf. A pashmina stole.
And so CHANGTANGI was born: a bridge from the high plateau of Changthang to the rest of the world — carrying with it this feeling, the story, and the people behind every thread.
Get to know the nomads of Changthang
From fiber to stole — a craft centuries in the making.
Each year in May or June, the Pashmina is hand-combed from the fleece of the Changthangi goats high in the Himalayan plateau of Changthang, carefully sorted, and transported down to the lowlands. There it is carded, spun into yarn, and finally woven. In our weaving workshops in northern India, it becomes the CHANGTANGI scarves and stoles — understated, soft, and naturally elegant.
We have visited the workshops in person to ensure that the working conditions and the atmosphere in which every scarf is made meet our own standards.
Entdecken Sie unsere Weberei in Pathankot, in Indien