To say that Katei Roze is a busy lady would be an
understatement. She juggles her own
fashion label with her latest venture
HYC (the pop up boutique I visited earlier this month), and has just finished a stint as a jewellery specialist at Fortnum and
Mason, as part of the team setting up their new jewellery department. Since graduating with a first class degree in Fashion Design,
Katei has built up an impressive CV. She studied at Cordwainers London College
of Fashion and trained at St Martins ‘Immersion’ course for entrepreneurs
trying to carve their own niche in the creative industry.
Following work experience at Vivienne Westwood, Basso and
Brooke, Alexander McQueen, PPQ, Georgina Goodman and Julian MacDonald, Katei
worked as retail manager and assistant designer at Johnny Rocket London. She
started selling Swarovski crystal berets in 2008 and established her vintage
label
House of Lalka, which has since merged with
HYC. Any precious free time is spent travelling for inspiration
but I managed to pin her down to talk about her
beautiful bag collection.
What made you decide to start your own handbag line?
I have never been a ‘handbag person’; I’ve always been drawn
to shoes, jewellery or clothes. I went to India in 2010 and needed a large hand
luggage bag, so I designed one on the plane over. I bought some sari fabric as
lining and gorgeous maroon coloured leather and it became the first KR handbag.
Back in London I used it every day for work and people began
asking where it was from. I went back to India in 2012 and had 10 more made in
carpet fabrics. I took over vintage florals and also used traditional Indian
fabrics. I realised that I wanted to design bags because there was nothing
currently on the market that excited me.
Is it a big leap from berets/footwear?
Berets were an easy way for me to start my label as I could
work from home. Liberty made a huge order and sold out, and I will always offer
them as part of my label. I studied footwear because I have always had a
passion for shoes. I really enjoyed the course but in reality, making footwear
is a very complicated and expensive process requiring machinery and financial
backing. I learned a lot about leather and how to manipulate it,
which fuelled my obsession for statement accessories. I love
designing anything linked with body image and self-expression, so handbags were
a natural progression. They perform a function but they can make or break an
outfit, and express what kind of person you are or what mood you’re in.
What fabrics do you use and where do you source them?
I use a lot of one off vintage fabrics, mostly from
upholstery or homeware. I source them from my Grandmother’s house, vintage
markets, Portobello Road and my favourite vintage fabric shop in St Leonards. I
love to use wet-look leather, unusual tones and shades of leather and nappa,
which I get from my leather wholesalers in East London. I also visited
Lineapelle in Bologna last year to source leather and findings. I love using
studs, crystal zips and bright binding to set off the fabrics. The bags are
made in Hackney at a very well established factory that I trust implicitly.
What inspires your current designs?
I am inspired by movement. I think it’s lovely to have a bag
that moves in its own way. The tassel clutch articulates very well. I am
currently designing bags inspired by medieval shapes, strong female warriors
and a hint of the 90s. It’s a bizarre mix but I find blurring elements that I
am passionate about, which aren’t usually combined, results in a strong design.
Who do you design for?
My ideal customer is a strong woman who wants to get the most
out of her life. Her bag is her ally; she uses it as a weapon against the
world. She carries her most important ammunition for the day – it is her home
away from home. My customers want to make a statement with what they are
carrying. They appreciate the avant-garde, and the unique and eccentric
qualities in life and themselves. They are warriors of the modern world.
Where can you buy KR bags?
They are currently available at
SHOP in St Leonards Norman
Road, and
from my Facebook page. If you see something you like you can contact me and I
will get it posted out to you. I take bespoke commissions and source and
suggest fabric for my customers.
What is it like to design bags for London Fashion Week?
I have a love/hate relationship with LFW. I have worked
there many times for other designers – Vivienne Westwood, PPQ, Basso and
Brooke, McQueen – and it’s a buzzing place, like a beehive of creativity and
egos. Sometimes it’s all a bit loud and the stingers on some people involved
can be pretty nasty.
Last September I designed a range of bags for
Jayne Pierson,
which was showcased with her collection. I really enjoyed the process of designing
for her brief and using her images as inspiration, which were different from
what I would have chosen myself. It’s always challenging to create something
for another person’s vision but I was proud of what I produced.
What are your goals for the brand?
A trade show in Paris next year, Premiere Class/Tranoi, and
I’d like to get stocked in boutiques in the UK, Europe and further afield and
have my own showcase at London Fashion Week. I’ll be travelling to source fabric and
interesting clothes/homeware to use on my bags and sell at HYC, which I plan to
re-open in London. I would love to have a well-rounded brand like Cath Kidston,
but a very eccentric, rock and roll version, where everything is a little more
exotic and edgy.
Top 3 songs for your studio soundtrack this summer:
