Our founder

The story of Four Leaves starts in 1981 when our founder Shiran Gort was born in a Catholic convent a little north of the capital Colombo in Sri Lanka. It soon became clear that “fusion” was to be his life theme when his Sri Lankan first name ‘Chanduka’ was added to the Portuguese surname of his biological mother, and he then was adopted by a loving Dutch mother and an Indonesian Dutch father and moved to The Netherlands. Raised in a little village in the east of the country, he found its own way in between three cultures (Dutch, Indonesian and his unconscious Sri Lankan roots) and realised that he finds true happiness in the mix.

 

When Shiran became a father for the first time (he now has two kids, a boy and a girl), something started to shift. He decided to leave his job in the fashion industry in 2018 and strike out on his own with a team of friends, to start a new venture. He was drawn to the idea of empowering children via a commercial product and began his mission. And when it came to naming his new company, Four Leaves was the obvious choice – representing the flag of Sri Lanka and its reference to the four virtues of Buddhism.

 

“When thinking of my roots in Sri Lanka, I think of rows of beds, pink and blue, probably because of pictures my parents made at the time. Therefore bed linen felt like the obvious product to embrace and naturally the orphanages in Sri Lanka came to mind to give back to.”

Four Leaves stands for Shiran’s love for contemporary fashion, well-being and social entrepreneurship with the aesthetics of tropical modernism from his country of birth. By marrying Eastern wisdom with a Western mindset, he clearly has developed his own blend. His company Four Leaves embodies Shiran’s quest for his past as well as his exploration of the importance of sleep, good personal hygiene. These daily routines can significantly improve the quality of life and should not be taken for granted.

Jack of all trades...

Shiran has vast amounts of experience in the development of fashion collections and a great commercial understanding. Now he wants to add more experience and consciousness in the bed and bath linen world. Combining a strong background in fashion and an education in business and entrepreneurship, Shiran would like to make a contribution in a cross-disciplinary style, expressing his love for brand building, colours, the tactility of materials, the beauty of Sri Lanka, and the notion of giving back. Aware of his strengths and his weaknesses, Shiran likes to surround himself with a team of experts in various fields and collectively bring ideas to the next level.