Strathberry of Scotland’s U.S. Takeover
If you’re up to date on all of your blog reading, then you’ll probably recognize the name With the help of the internet, the luxury brand is quickly gaining traction in the United Kingdom as well as the U.S. The design house, which is based in Edinburgh, boasts beautiful, carefully handcrafted leather bags and accessories (check out the process in the video below).
In the U.K., Strathberry is currently working with several bloggers as well as high-profile celebrities including Paloma Faith, Lily Allen, and Emma Watson. (Watson’s bag even has a dedication to her work for #HeForShe, the gender equality campaign for which she is an ambassador, embossed on its interior.) But, the brand’s current goal is to spread into the United States and they’re well on their way!
“We’re super keen to develop our brand in the U.S. and feel there’s a really positive level of interest in our new collection – in fact over the last couple of weeks around 60-70% of our enquiries and sales have been to customers in the USA,” says founder and managing director, Guy Hundleby.
This is where Kickstarter comes in. Kickstarter is a project-hosting website that helps to gain 
funding for creative projects around the world. Offering rewards for different donation levels, the site gives great incentive to potential funders. In the hopes of gaining more widespread recognition, Strathberry is launching their own campaign with the site in the next week or so. This project will offer some of their gorgeous handbags at special prices as rewards for participation. Hundleby says they will be including the Tote, Tote Midi, MC Mini and MC Nano as well as some smaller pieces like coin holders and zip-around purses, which makes it easy (and well worth while!) to help out at any monetary level! This campaign, along with the dozen or so blog
gers already loving and promoting the brand in the U.S., is sure to help spread the Strathberry name. And if all goes well, (we know it will!), Hundleby plans to pursue conversations with high-end department stores such as Nordstrom and Barneys New York in the hopes of making these bags available for purchase at these locations.
So, what else can be expected from Strathberry in the future? Well, for starters, a men’s collection! Because of legendary fictional spy James Bond’s connections to Scotland, (Ian Fleming’s Bond attends Fettes College in Scotland and in Skyfall, Bond lives in the beautiful Scottish Highlands), the brand is currently working on several pieces for men that are cut from the same leathers used on the inside of Aston Martin cars and will have a distinct Bond-esque feel. Talk about luxury!
“All in all it’s a very positive time for us, we’re trying not to get too excited and to keep our focus as we carefully develop the brand in North America and elsewhere around the World,” Hundleby said.
Well we’re certainly excited! We can’t wait to see where Strathberry goes in the future! Keep an eye on the brand’s Twitter account for updates on the Kickstarter campaign! And if you can’t wait for it to launch, we don’t blame you! Check out the site to view (and get your hands on) some of these incredible bags!
