ALL ABOUT THE BAG: DeMellier has launched a high summer collection with Matchesfashion as a result of their success with the luxury retailer.
The accessories brand is led by Mireia Llusia-Lindh, a Harvard graduate and former luxury strategy adviser to firms such as Burberry and LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton.
In June 2022, it was reported in WWD that her business is on track to become a $50 million brand in the next three years.
“We’ve been performing very well, so that’s why they came to us with the idea of doing a capsule,” Llusia-Lindh told WWD on a Zoom call with Adele White, head of wholesale at DeMellier.
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The brand launched with Matchesfashion in May of last year and this is the first time they’ve collaborated with a retailer on an exclusive collection. The two teams met in November to discuss the idea.
“They really wanted to go after a high summer theme. They definitely saw an opportunity there and we’ve done canvas stripe bags within our whole collection in black and white, as well as cobalt blue and white,” said White.
“We did three exclusive colors: lemon, azure and macchiato,” added Llusia-Lindh, who tweaked her designs on preexisting bags such as the New York, Vancouver and Cannes by giving them a relaxed slouch in the canvas fabric.
Summer destinations were the muses behind the light bags. Llusia-Lindh looked at vintage Italian beach photographs from the ‘60s and watched classic Italian films to gauge the overall feel of the collection.
The bags are all made from plastic free canvas with natural cottons and the leather is sourced from a gold rated Italian tannery.
DeMellier is carried by select stockists, including Harrods, Browns and Farfetch.
“We’ve been very picky with our distribution actually. When I founded the brand I wanted everything luxury, but the price,” said Llusia-Lindh, whose bags start at 195 pounds and go up to 695 pounds.
The Matchesfashion’s fall 2023 buying report highlighted that bags are still having a strong moment with the retailer with a 290 percent increase year-over-year.