Bag fever. Why creating your own brand has become the “pie” of entrepreneurship for many young Spanish women

Like mushrooms. Here’s how pocket stamps, activity in the fashion sector is so greedy that it accumulates launches week after week. A cursory Google search for young “made in Spain” bag manufacturers gives us an endless list of companies that deal almost exclusively with this product: Canussa, Mercules, Miuur, Carmen Tessa, Daniel Chong, Labienhecha, Its Lava, Relics, Malababa, Biba, CRVSH, Tita Madrid, Alumbra, Zahati, Babau, Sur Sac, Lydia Lighthouse, Clandestine Empire, Laia Allen, Bluelow, Boria and Coria, Bakari, Mietis, Sambar, Hobe, DeMellier, Naiara Elgarresca, Heden, Benchbags, Mauska, Steve Mono, Beatriz Furest, Abbacino, Leandra, Maison Etnad, to which we could add all those that are mainly dedicated to shoes and add bags to their offer. They all compete with foreign brands, with fakes, and not so much with increasingly expensive luxury bags, germs, elk chanel, elk Dior, who play in a different league.

According to the materials of the portal fashion business, cited by Katya Eichinger (‘Fashion and other neuroses’), art Merkada in general designer handbags would grow by about 8% over 10 years, reaching approx 53.5 billion euros annually in 2022. Because, the author explains, “here (she means bags) you earn along with perfumes, sunglasses and cosmetics Real money. The dreams of haute couture collections are mainly related to the sale of leather products, which, lit up like relics, dominate the shelves of exclusive fashion boutiques.” Therefore, the bag, far from being an accessory, will be authentic The Holy Grail of Fashion the center of gravity of the business.

Bag, the real protagonist

what pockets steel central in a woman’s wardrobe (and increasingly in a man’s, mind you) is a bell that fashion experts have been ringing for years. If the average woman of the 80s could accumulate three or four bags, conducted in 2008 survey of the firm Evax showed that although Most Spanish women had at least six, no less than 40% said they had more than 10 bags (15 from Madrid, the most). These data are consistent with data from another survey conducted “Wall Street Journal” in 2013 which gave the following data: the average American woman had 11 handbags and bought more than two new ones every year.

But the truth is that a lot has happened since 2013, notably the coronavirus pandemic, which according to Euromonitor has caused sales of designer handbags to stall, and growth is estimated to continue until reaching 91.4 billion euros in 2027. And we’re only talking about bags. Dear friends.

In the absence of more current data than the previous ones, an informal survey of Spanish women of various generations by this writer shows that the previous totals are already well exceeded. Add in day bags, satchels, fanny packs, clutches… we’ll get there easily 20 bags per capita. Why do we have so many bags (a typical male question, how can I waste the opportunity to answer it)? Well, because far from being just a practical object (Eichinger considers 1918, at the end of the first world war as the turning point from which “a practical accessory becomes a zona ntima portil”) The bag has acquired the same aesthetic significance as the clothes themselves, not to mention that, as the above-mentioned author points out, in the case of design, These have become authentic “a symbol of a woman’s status.”

Explode explode off

this “explosion” consumption of bags partly explains the distribution of manufacturers of these products. But it is really such a simple, safe and profitable business to wake up a entrepreneurial fever as we live today? Eduardo Sanchez,director from IED Madrid Fashion School, explains that “to begin with, leather goods, especially bags, represent a unique and multifaceted product category that allows designers to realize their vision and create distinctive brand identity. The constant demand for innovative design in fashion makes this sector very attractive. Perception consumerwhich examines the bags of a an expression of your identity in status, contributes to the attractiveness of work in this category. And we must not forget about purely commercial and financial aspects; perspective higher rate of return, especially in luxury segment, “increases the appeal of those entrepreneurs looking for a profitable venture in the fashion industry.”

One of those entrepreneurs Fatima Gabriel, who founded his brand of bags Degabrielle less than four years ago: “Bags are the “hero” product. (representing 70% to 80% of the sales of some of the most famous luxury companies in the world) and I saw in them “a major strategic opportunity.” In addition, the entrepreneur notes and reveals another key to attractiveness, “this category He doesn’t have a size problem, which simplifies significantly the process of production in commercialization“. Bag of your brand, such as model “Ame Cosmos”, Handcrafted in Ubrik from certified cow leather, gold-plated eco-hardware, eco-packaging… costs €520. Model “Olmedo Polar”, same architectural as the previous one, €460. He “Ellipse Estelle”, 390 euros.

Providing differential meaning, the case of Fatima de Gabriel

About Gabriel, who studied design, then earned a master’s degree in product management and digital marketing – training he explains was “fundamental” to his business – and came to entrepreneurship after apprenticeships with various national brands, he says he had have always sought to undertake and develop their own own project: “I was clear that I wanted to create a brand that would deliver differential value”. This year, his target is the North American market, where, he explains, “receptivity to European brands and trust in new brands are promising.” He is also planning his entry into the field of shoe manufacturing.

Of course, in this, as in all types of business, desire is not always possible, and many brands disappear in a short time. Fatima de Gabriel was ready for difficulties and understood her goals. A fundamental one: “create something unique. In a saturated market, I felt it was important that my product stand out. I wanted the appreciation of my bags to go beyond their superficial appearance and focus on their intricate construction, graphics and other distinctive elements that they exceptional”.

But, no matter how much you rate it, with such a wide range of offerings… it’s possible build customer loyalty? Eduardo Sánchez believes that: “Unlike other accessories, bags usually evoke long-term relationship with consumers, promoting a pattern of repeat purchases.” Loyalty is the El Dorado of any company today, the age of infidelity! And it turns out that it was hidden in the bag. Or at twenty.