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SUITSUIT

MY PAST

I WAS BORN TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE

It all started in 2007 with the development of suitcase covers replacing the overload of plastic sealing you see at the airports. After two years of consistent slogging and an intriguing journey across the land of manufacturers, fabrics, zippers, yarn and packaging, the hard work finally paid off: I was born. In 2009 my first products entered the market: stretchable suitcase covers. It was insane to see how customers immediately loved them. Or even, how loved I was. People liked to be seen with me, while I just wanted to make a sustainable impact in a fashionable way.

READY TO BE UNIQUE

The first five years were unprecedented. I saw opportunities and seized them immediately, but in 2015 I sensed that something was missing. The first products I designed were fun and funky and above all, loved, but I couldn’t enjoy my success to the fullest. It all didn’t feel like ‘me’ anymore. I embraced everyone’s style except my own. My products weren’t unique. I was ready to distinguish myself in the luggage market. I had to.

FOCUS ON WOMEN

The luggage market was (and perhaps still is) a male-dominated market. Everything revolved around dry facts and figures. Men try to persuade male consumers with arguments based on material, weight or capacity. None of the luggage brands really tried to understand women’s perspective on travel. Women felt vastly under-served. I recognised the similarities between me and the female group of buyers who hardly had any voice. It immediately sparked my motivation to give them one by expressing my own ideas and opinions in my own, feminine style. And to show them that I am passionately committed to developing luggage, bags and other travel accessories that make a real difference to the way they travel, both in function and design. That became my reason for being. And it felt completely natural to do so, being a woman myself who battles the same challenges. By focusing exclusively on women, I found my sweet spot.

PROFOUNDLY FEMININE

With my renewed focus on women came the responsibility to keep up with their changing needs and desires. It was no longer about the hottest trends and the hippest colours, I had to understand how they travel to be able to develop products from a woman’s point of view. I recognised her desire for style, inspiration, memories and the desire to feel good, along with her desire for practically designed products that fit the context they are in. As soon as I launched my renewed products, women all over the world were attracted to them. Young women even turned them into Instagrammable fashion items and seemed to carry them with pride.

my present →