Integrity and Creativity Combined: Over 300 Cultural Products Displayed at Yakore Exhibition

Lhasa. More than 300 cultural creative products of various sizes and shapes have been systematically displayed at the exhibition hall of Yakore Company, a space richly filled with a beautiful blend of tradition and modernity. Every aspect, from the exterior design and interior layout to the decoration of the exhibition hall, reflects a deep fusion of traditional Tibetan ancient charm and contemporary aesthetics.

When this correspondent arrived at the venue, company head Tashi Palden was engaged in a lively discussion with a colleague about the design of a new product. His journey from being born into an ordinary family to becoming a designer is highly inspirational. From a student at a vocational school to becoming the head of an established design company, he faced many ups and downs, yet he always upheld integrity as his guiding principle.

Tashi Palden was born into an ordinary family in Gonjo County, Chamdo. When he was six years old, his mother passed away. Due to the family’s strained financial condition and having many children to care for, his father had no choice but to entrust him to his grandmother. His grandmother raised him like her own child and always taught him, “Whatever you do, honesty and integrity are the foundation of everything.” Although he did not fully grasp the depth of his grandmother’s words as a child, this very message became his guiding light at every step of his later business ventures.

Setting aside the family’s hope of seeing him become a government employee after graduation, Tashi made a decision in 2018 that defied everyone’s expectations: to go to Ngari to start a business. There, together with a friend, he established a small advertising company, beginning with basic work such as document printing, banner printing, and signboard making. While running the company for two years, he encountered numerous difficulties; however, his grandmother’s lesson on integrity remained firmly rooted in his mind. By ensuring the quality of every task and delivering on promises made to clients, he gradually earned the trust of the local people.

However, when the company’s income was barely enough to cover daily expenses, Tashi found himself once again caught in a web of dilemma. Reflecting on the past, Tashi Palden said, “I have always loved learning. But after two years, I felt my design skills had stagnated, and since much of the daily work was repetitive, I had a strong sense that my dream of design was drifting further away. Therefore, I let go of everything I had built in Ngari and made up my mind to go to Lhasa to continue studying and start a business.”

Thus, in 2020, Tashi Palden left his advertising company in Ngari and came to Lhasa to start a business, carrying in his heart the dream of preserving and promoting Tibetan culture. After arriving in Lhasa, Tashi joined hands with his high school classmate Dondrup Tsering to establish the Tibet Yakore Brand Design Company, beginning work on design projects related to Tibetan culture. Unlike in Ngari, the competition in Lhasa was far more intense, making the challenges considerably greater. Tashi Palden said, “When we first started the business in Lhasa, the two of us shared a small room. The conditions weren’t great. However, working together with a like-minded friend on design work that we loved brought immense joy to the heart.”

Explaining the reason behind naming the company “Yakore,” Tashi Palden confidently stated, “Firstly, being a Khampa myself, ‘Yakore’ is a term from our everyday speech. Secondly, for a brand, the most important thing is to be easy to pronounce and memorable. I felt the name ‘Yakore’ embodied these qualities. Moreover, it fully aligns with the company’s ultimate goal of using design to promote Tibetan culture not only within Tibet but across the nation and the world. It also carries the beautiful aspiration for the flourishing of Tibetan design.”

To promote the newly created cultural creative products, Tashi Palden successively collaborated with shops, hotels, and online platforms. Since 2022, he has been sharing the background and story of each cultural creative product he designs on platforms like WeChat and Weibo. When a consumer purchased his first product directly online, Tashi Palden felt an immense sense of joy, which further boosted his confidence to continue the promotion and dissemination of culture.

According to Tashi Palden, the company has so far designed over 300 cultural creative products in total. The company has successively won accolades, including the first prize in the Tibet Autonomous Region Cultural Creative Product Innovation Competition, the Gold Award in the logo design competition for the 2022 Tibetan Water Tiger Year New Year Gala by Amdo Television, and the third prize in the 8th Lhasa Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition held in 2025.

Currently, the Yakore Brand Design Company serves as a demonstration base for the cultural industry in Lhasa City, a member unit of the Lhasa City Chamber of Commerce, and a practical training base for knowledgeable personnel at the Tibet Vocational and Technical College. It holds 94 intellectual property rights and one utility model patent. The company has 13 employees, most of whom are university graduates. Tashi Palden has thus not only turned his passion into a profession but has also contributed his utmost to the employment of fellow graduates.

Tashi Palden said, “I hope that young people with a passion for design will join us. By relying on their expertise and skills, and through in-depth research into the excellent traditional Tibetan culture, they can combine diverse and rich Tibetan cultural elements with modern design techniques. In this way, they can create more products that embody national characteristics while meeting modern consumer aesthetics, becoming a powerful force for the development and dissemination of Tibetan culture.”