Meet the Designer

We introduced you to eLUXURY’s contemporary buyer earlier, and now it is time for you to meet their Designer Buyer. Andrew Dershaw is Designer Buyer for eLUXURY.com, whose selection I frequent most often for Purse Blog posts. There indeed is someone behind the buying choices for the designer selection at eLUXURY.com and we got a chance to ask him some questions.

PB: For eLuxury, is there a certain profile of a customer you are looking to attract based on the handbags you offer?

As the Designer Buyer, for me it is more about acting as a filter for of our current and aspirational customers. I need to have a steady feel for current trends and demands, and act as a liaison between our customers and designers to ensure we are serving up the most fresh and must have bags that our customers just have to carry! Our Designer handbag customer’s all do share some commonalities though; they need the most luxurious fabrications, in the must-have styles, from the world’s top designers.

PB: What is big for this Fall/Winter?

For Fall we started to see what we are calling “the new luxury” emerge. This is more about individuality, quality, and expressing more of one’s personal style through their dress. As our socio-economic climate shifts, so does the way we shop. We are seeing less of a demand in our logo and iconic handbags, and much more of a need for bags with new and different embellishment and luxurious details. The Fendi Secret Code Bag and Dior 61 are great examples of this, as well as must haves for the season!

Read the full interview below..

One of my favorite online boutiques to browse and shop is eLUXURY.com. Their selection is vast and the options are always on par for the season. But I rarely think about who is behind picking the handbags to show all of us season after season. If you wondered the same thing, wonder no more! We had a chance to get to know the Contemporary Buyer for eLUXURY.com, Jen Ely. Jen took some time out of her busy schedule to answer some of our questions.

PB: Who do you have in mind when buying bags for eLuxury?

I keep key trends of the season top of mind when it comes to Contemporary handbag selection for the site. Our customer is on the cutting edge of fashion and wants the latest and greatest to choose from every season. I focus on making my mix of brands, styles and colors as unique as possible so that customers know they can come to eluxury.com for both that exclusive, new, “IT” bag, as well as a staple, essential bag that they might not be able to find elsewhere. I keep in mind what bags have sold best from each brand in past seasons, as well as a creating a compelling mix of new designers and key existing designers. A great handbag is a perfect piece to invest in, and I want my customers to get excited when they find THE bag on eluxury.com, so I keep that in mind throughout the buying process!

Click here to read the full interview...

We have another treat for you right before the Thanksgiving holiday. Only thing about this treat is that it will not hurt your waistline. We introduced you all to the dynamic duo behind Lambertson Truex last spring. Vlad and I took time to follow up with Richard Lambertson and John Truex earlier this month. The bags they design continue to ignite our handbag loving hearts and Vlad and I left NYC with a bag a piece and a pair of shoes from LT. The designs speak for themselves and the men are top notch. Always a pleasure to see Richard and John. Enjoy a look into what has been going on with Lambertson Truex since our last interview.

While we gave a sneak peak to the Minkettes on the forum already, it is time we formally introduce the Rebecca Minkoff Spring 2009 line. We had the pleasure to sit down with Rebecca two weeks ago to ask her your questions, find out more about what is to come, and see her hot new bags. Studs are seen on many of the bags, offering a rocker edge, which is the perfect touch for the gal with a little kick in her step. The colors are popping, the hardware is a mixture of old and new, and the wish lists for these bags are growing.

Megs and I had the rare opportunity to meet with and interview one of the long-time greats, Carlos Falchi. The master took us around his creative lair, his production and allowed us to pick his brain for a good hour.
Needless to say, the experiences was fantastic and we are happy being able to share it with our readers, along with some intimate insights into the inner workings of Carlos’ design studio.

Click here to read the interview.

Shannon brought you all a little insight behind Kooba a couple weeks ago with 5 questions for Abbe Held, Kooba’s creative director. Vlad and I spent time with Abbe Held in her NYC showroom last week getting to know more about her and the Kooba line. The fun-hearted mother of two spends her weekdays designing some of the hottest bags in the market and her weekends dancing in the kitchen with her two daughters and husband on pancake Sunday. Her bags are crafted beautifully with a practical feel and an edgy touch. We loved getting to know one of the leading women behind Kooba and hope you do as well.

I am a tad late on this, but I hope some of the NYC ladies take advantage of this opportunity! We have already introduced you to Bird Handbags. The line is said to be geared toward rich hippies, and while I am neither of those two things, I adore her bags. The Lady is my favorite as the style was definitely lacking in the handbag market.

Liz Carey, the designer of Bird Handbags, will be making a Bird Handbags Public Appearance at Bergdorf Goodman October 24th from noon-3PM on the 5th Floor. Make sure to stop by NYC ladies and tell her Purse Blog sent you!!

We are always on the hunt for the next big designers emerging in the handbag and purse world. Many times I don’t even have to search, as the designers and their ever-growing popularity comes to me. Continually seeing talk on Treesje on our Purse Forum, I realized it was time to look into the designers. It was quite fitting then that soon after I was introduced to their line, Vlad and I were invited to an event at Saks in NYC where the designers from Treesje, Laura Darrah and Sheila Nazarian, would be making an appearance. Treesje proves to be one of the strongest up and comers, offering casual styles with a wide variety of bold colors. The style of the bags are very laid-back, very LA, just like the designers behind the brand. Vlad and I first met Sheila and we all hit it off. She was so easy to talk to that I could see us being lunch buddies if we did not live approximately 2348 miles apart. Sheila showed us the designs from Treesje and gave us a chance to interview her about the line. Find more information at Treesje online and stay tuned for many more reviews from this brand!

Make sure to click on the thumbnails to see the name and price of the bag.

PB: Where did you come up with your unique name, Treesje?

Treesje: We were both bridesmaids in a mutual friends wedding and we took the bride’s middle name. She was named about her moms best friend who is Treesje and she is from Australia.

PB: How did you decide to get into handbags?

Treesje: Well Laura has a business background and I have a fine arts background. I don’t know, it kind of fell into our laps. Laura was traveling around the world and she came back from Bali and she had these really cute beaded bags. I told her “I could sell those for you like crazy!!”. And one thing lead to another; we just started with these beaded bags and one day I called her up and said “Why don’t we design our own bags?”. So it was the matter of finding the leather and getting things going.

Click here for the rest of the interview!

Vlad and I had the pleasure of meeting Devi Kroell, the glamorous designer who is soft spoken and radiates when speaking of her designs. I have always been a fan of Devi’s slouchy hobos, that made her name known, and more recently her box clutches. Many first wore Devi Kroell’s python slouchy hobo, which at the time Devi was one of few designers implementing the use of exotic skins. In fact, Jessica Simpson made the bag quite popular and her sister Ashley became a fan also. Her purses are designed with all attention paid to detail. Devi’s focus is on the exotics, and while she has been known for her python use (including python boots who are worn by stars like Kate Moss), Devi has ventured into alligator skin. Vlad was obsessing over her orange Alligator Large Hobo which retails for $28,990. So with that being said, I shall start to re-obsess over her python bags, because her alligator bags are not in my budget right now. Devi Kroell has lived around the world taking in different cultures, languages, and experiences to make her handbag and accessory line what it is today.

Read our interview with Devi Kroell HERE!

As we continue to provide exclusive information to our readers, designer interviews will become more common on Purse Blog. We have previously sat down with Rebecca Minkoff to learn more about her brand and looked forward to following up further this past week. Rebecca Minkoff has created a bag frenzy, amassing a large following who need their Rebecca Minkoff fix. Her colors have become highly sought after, including her Tangerine, Wine, and Basket weave. This past week we sat down to ask Rebecca your questions, get a sneak peek at her Fall 2008 line, and take an exclusive tour of her NYC factory.

Read the entire interview here. Enjoy!