Handbag Designer 101: The Stories Behind Handbag Designers, Brands, and Industry Icons

Julie Deane CBE: The Post-It on the Factory Wall to the Sale of The Cambridge Satchel Company Part 2 | Emily Blumenthal & Julie Deane

• Emily Blumenthal • Season 1

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As we continue the journey of what it takes to build a luxury handbag brand from scratch the harsh realities of the industry, we pick up where we left off with Julie Deane, and her difficult choice to sell her company. This is precisely the thrilling journey Julie Deane, founder of the Cambridge Statue Company, unravels with us. We take a deep dive into the complex world of the handbag business, learning about the trials of selling, the betrayal of manufacturers, and the courage it took for Julie to take control and become her own manufacturer. This story of resilience and innovation shines a spotlight on the unexpected opportunity that a Google Chrome advert presented, reflecting the success of the company's adept use of technology. 

Does the thought of navigating various challenges such as Brexit, the pandemic, and the quest for the right investors sound daunting? Julie shares how she faced these hurdles head-on while establishing a luxury handbag brand. She also opens up about her ultimate decision to sell her company to a French group that values British manufacturing, ensuring job security for her employees. In our closing chapter, we engage in a heartfelt talk about the highs and lows of being a handbag designer. Julie shares some invaluable advice for anyone considering this career path and emphasizes the unique and exciting experiences it brings. These captivating insights are a must-listen for anyone interested in the behind-the-scenes reality of the handbag industry. Don't miss out, and remember to leave us a rating and review!


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Speaker 1:

And they were laughing. They said, well, you're like no, seriously, I want a banana.

Speaker 2:

They said you're the least effort kind ever you know for in these series. He said we've had Lady Gaga, we've had people. You can have anything you want, right? You know, you can just tell us anything from any restaurant in London, we will go out and get it whatever you want. I said no, no, just, you know a banana, I'm happy with a banana. And I said I'm looking out there I can see somebody's got a cheese sandwich. If I could have a cheese sandwich I would be just all set. You know it was.

Speaker 1:

Hi and welcome to Handbag Designer 101, the podcast, with your host, emily Blumenthal, handbag industry expert and the handbag fairy godmother. Each week we uncover the stories behind the handbags we love, from the iconic brands and top designers to the creativity, craftsmanship and culture that define the handbag world. Whether you're a designer, collector or simply passionate about handbags, this is your front row seat to it all. Welcome, my dear sweet Julie Dean. Back to the Handbag Designer 101, the podcast for part two of the tale of the Cambridge Satchel Company. So where we left it because this was worthy of part one and part two we made it to the point where somebody had come in and, after you've been running it yourself, a company had come in and you made the hard decision to sell part of it or give up control. The first time. What had happened?

Speaker 2:

first time what had happened? Yeah, because we talked about all that happened with the manufacturer stealing the leather, making the ripoff bags. I think that was such a difficult, difficult time because the relationship that you have with your manufacturer is a very strong one. Know, it's a marriage, You're dependent on a marriage, and I think that it's very difficult when you've been having meetings every week when you'd shaken hands, sat across the table, looked someone in the eye, felt that you knew somebody so well, to then have such an unexpected and unbelievable sort of disruption more than a disruption and it makes you question are you even a good judge of character? Should you be doing this? How do you get over this? Which is one of the big reasons that led me to this.

Speaker 2:

Looking back on it, quite incredible decision of no, what I'm going to do is I'm going to become my own manufacturer, you know, and I'm not going to go through this again.

Speaker 2:

And which is, you know, looking from the slightly, from the outside, now back in, I sort of think, wow, that was such a brave thing to do for someone who didn't know about manufacturing, but it felt like the only way of not going through that again and it was a decision that would pay dividends over and over and over again, you know, sort of in the years that followed, because it meant that I would never feel that if a bigger brand came along I would be pushed backwards. You know I would no longer be a priority, or you just never quite know what somebody else's agenda is Right. When you own your own manufacturing, it just means you can decide what gets made first and you know whether you have overtime to do something or in the whole product development line. It makes things a lot more straightforward and, though nobody could have foreseen it at the time during the pandemic, it just means that at least you're slightly more in control of how the whole thing is handled. You know how people are taken care of, how you make the things safe, your supply chain. You at least know what's going on. So it was something that I look back on and, I think, an incredible decision, but I'm really glad I went that way.

Speaker 1:

So, in the midst of all this, you had not once but twice, somebody come in. Yeah, take over your company so what?

Speaker 2:

it didn't feel like a takeover, I think. That where we were lucky and I was speaking to somebody who's got a startup just this morning and I said to them you've got to really know your business, what makes you different, and then you will become visible on a very crowded radar Right. And I do remember it was only about six months, maybe less. After that we had the whole thing of the Google advert and I don't think we touched on that. But I remember the thing with the manufacturer made me quite a paranoid person and I remember getting a phone call and it just said oh, we've got this amazing, unbelievable media opportunity you've been shortlisted for, but we need to know more about your business. And I was just not having it. So I was like, well, tell me all about it, otherwise I'm telling you nothing. And they sort of got back and they said, no, no, well, we can't tell you very much about this, but just believe me, this is something you don't want to miss. And I was just thinking no, you must think I was born yesterday. I'm not having this. I'm not divulging my secrets. I don't know what secrets I felt I had left to divulge at that point, but I'm not divulging. And they said okay, look, we will find out if we can tell you, but you're going to have to sign a non-disclosure agreement.

Speaker 2:

And I remember my mum was sitting with me in the office just outside Cambridge, and my mum was sitting there, the dog was sitting there, and all of a sudden, this agreement, this non-disclosure agreement, came through and it was massive. I mean, the printer was doing overtime, it was huge. And my mum was looking at me and she said well, julie, if this is some kind of joke, they're taking it very seriously. There's this endless stack, it's like two inch thick document, and we looked at it and in the end I sort of thought and they love the story of how, with £600, using things like Google Translate to take orders from people in Korea and Japan, and if you've used all of these different free tools, they want to use you as the subject of the advert for Google Chrome.

Speaker 2:

You could be the face of Google Chrome. I was looking at my mother just get out. You know, we just didn't. So we were sending the things and so you know, that is what happened in the end. And I remember going out to BBH, this incredible advertising agency, and they said, we've got so many questions that we need to create this advert and I hadn't had any breakfast. I'd gone on, an early train arrived there and I was really, really hungry and as I was going through I could see that?

Speaker 1:

Wait a second, so? But Google has a good buffet. I don't understand. No, but this was at BBH. This was, oh, the age of the advertising agency. They didn't have a spread for you.

Speaker 2:

Well, I went to them and I said I know it's only 1230. I'm really really, really hungry I've come in from Cambridge. Could I have a banana? And they were laughing.

Speaker 1:

They said, well, you're like no, seriously, I want a banana.

Speaker 2:

They said you're the least effort kind ever you know for in these series. He said we've had Lady Gaga, we've had people. You can have anything you want, right? You know, you can just tell us anything from any restaurant in London, we will go out and get it whatever you want. I said no, no, just you know a banana, I'm happy with a banana. And I said I'm looking out there I can see somebody's got a cheese sandwich. If I could have a cheese sandwich I would be just all set. You know it was. And I remember back to that sort of phase of doing the Google advert. I had no idea what a big deal this was going to be. You know the advert on YouTube we had 8 million views.

Speaker 1:

I need to go back and see it because I have a big recollection. It was like you by a table, wasn't it?

Speaker 2:

And it was, I remember that it was just incredible, because I remember saying to Emily and Max because my kids were both on that advert and I remember saying to them look, I know you've just started a new school, but don't worry, nobody's going to see this, this isn't, don't worry, nobody. And were you still married? That, yes, I was, I was. And at the first time that advert aired we have this huge sort of it's like an america's got talent type thing the x factor, yeah, yeah, biggest show on tv at that time and the advert aired during the first break of the X Factor on Saturday night primetime TV. And both my children were looking at me like, really, this isn't going to be a big hit, you know at all? No, of course it isn't. No, I took them to the cinema. Sure enough, larger than life. There it was, the advert was playing in the cinemas. So they went back to school and it was like what did you do over the summer holiday? Oh well, you know we're on the Google advert. It was absolutely incredible. It was incredible and, of course, the website crashed, but it was just so exciting. It was very, very exciting.

Speaker 2:

And it was a year after that that we got approached by. Well, for the six months up to when I decided who to take investment from, I was getting phone calls all the time, you know, from private equity, from venture capital places. Oh, we'll take you out for lunch, you can tell us your plans, and I'm still, you know, thinking well, why would I do that? You know, I'm really really busy. I don't know you, I don't want to go to lunch with you and I don't want to tell you my plans, you know.

Speaker 2:

And then in the end it became obvious that it would be really nice to have somebody else sitting at the table, because if you're the one that, everything comes just down to you. And the company was growing as the seventh fastest growing company in the UK. Everything was growing so quickly and I've never done any of this before. I just knew what I liked and what I didn't like. You know, we we were making for Dover Street Market, we were working with Vivian Westwood, we were working with Comme des Garcons, we'd been in Vogue in seven countries and I just thought it would be really nice to have people that actually know what they're doing at this table. That would be a lot less stressful.

Speaker 1:

If you ever wanted to start a handbag brand and didn't know where to start, this is for you. If you had dreams of becoming a handbag designer but aren't trained in design, this is for you. If you have a handbag brand and need strategy and direction, this is for you. I'm Emily Blumenthal, handbag designer expert and handbag fairy godmother, and this is the Handbag Designer 101 Masterclass. Over the next 10 classes, I will break down everything you need to know to make, manufacture and market a handbag brand, broken down to ensure that you will not only skip steps in the handbag building process, but also to save money to avoid the learning curve of costly mistakes.

Speaker 1:

For the past 20 years, I've been teaching at the top fashion universities in New York City, wrote the Handbag Designer Bible, founded the Handbag Awards and created the only Handbag Designer podcast. I'm going to show you like I have countless brands to create in this in-depth course, from sketch to sample to sale. Whether you're just starting out and don't even know where to start or begin, or if you had a brand and need some strategic direction, the Handbag Designer 101 Masterclass is just for you. So let's get started and you'll be the creator of the next it bag. Join me, emily Blumenthal, in the Handbag Designer 101 Masterclass. So be sure to sign up at emilyblumenthalcom slash masterclass and type in the code podcast to get 10% off your masterclass today.

Speaker 2:

And so I engaged a big audit accounting firm. You know that was really really sort of big in the space and just sort of said to them can you please just talk to all of these people and just give me a list of three, just three, that you think are really good, that I should speak to and meet, and I'll decide from those three. But I don't want this constant barrage of cloning, and they did a fantastic job of that. You know. They sort of taught me through. These are the differences between these three that we've narrowed it down to, because that's manageable. I mean, yeah, to run this business, and that was already more than a full-time job. I didn't need to be trying to be, you know, distracted by all these people wanting to get me punched. So that was really good. And the three that they gave me at the end were three excellent ones.

Speaker 2:

They definitely picked the right ones and that was an interesting process, you know, to try, and I mean one was easy, because I went to visit their offices and it was so messy and it looked so disorganized. I just thought, no, no, yeah, that's out. Yeah, I can't deal with going to a place where I think that it felt chaotic. I didn't like it, and it's got to be a place you feel really comfortable, and so I did. I got down to Index. And then Inflection was the other one, and both of those were a really good fit, are just so impressive. You know, they've backed some incredible, incredible brands, and fashion wasn't particularly their space. They're more, I would say, they're still just more tech-minded, but just so impressive. And then inflection they've done great things, but it was then came down to the way that people wanted to structure the investment, and I'm very debt averse, as one should be. I think it puts less, you know. It felt less, so I just wanted a straight equity investment.

Speaker 1:

So was this the first investment or the second one? This?

Speaker 2:

was the first one. This is the first one, and if I went back I could have made far more of a success of that. It's this kind of imposter syndrome type thing of look, I've got it to this stage, but now I need to get the experts into scale. And now we've got.

Speaker 1:

And what you realize after the fact that they aren't experts and they just have money, after the fact that they aren't experts and they just have money. So how did you handle it? Once they got involved and what ensued? You took it back, didn't you? Or how did you? It was, how many years were you with the?

Speaker 2:

final. Well, right until the end, when I sold it, index was still involved, and one thing I would say is you need to deal with people that you respect, because they behave well all the way through. They might not think they want to put more money in, and maybe that's the right decision, because as a founder, you're always you know it's like as a mom you always think your child is the best. You always think that, yes, you just need to. But they do have that objectivity. So they might not want to put more money in and you might have disagreements along the way, but as long as you've gone with an investor that's a good investor with a good reputation then they behave well throughout.

Speaker 1:

What took you to the point of saying, okay, it's time to sell? Was that them, was it? You? Was it? Collective, was it? You just didn't like the direction, like I'm I needed to step away because we'd gone through brexit.

Speaker 2:

We thought brexit was going to be a really, really difficult and it did throw up a number of challenges, but those challenges were totally dwarfed by the pandemic. We have leather from Europe often, and so either from Italy or from Spain or from Holland, and that supply chain, you know, during the pandemic, places are completely locked down. We couldn't get leather to the factory. Also, the shops Right, oh my gosh, all of a sudden the shops were closed and we had about six shops during that time. Half of the landlords, totally reasonable, and, you know, did the right thing. And then some of the landlords, reasonable and you know, did the right thing, and then some of the landlords, no, no, rent reduction we are pressing for how can you still pay your rent when you have no customers, when the shop can't even be open? So you know, that was a very, very stressful time. Over a hundred people on furlough, yeah, you know, and it was a really, really stressful time and I think it was during that time that I thought I'm going to hold things steady, I'm going to get through this, but after that I need time away. I need time to recover from just all this constant, you know, and the pandemic ended up being, you know, years of lockdowns and disruption and tourist traffic behaving differently and tourist traffic behaving differently, you know, and it just everything changed. And so when I was approached, you know, just over a year ago, by a French group that had deep pockets, that wanted to set up a luxury group, but they loved the fact that we had British manufacturing because the factory that I'd set up, knowing nothing, I have been incredibly fortunate in having a head of manufacturing, that the loveliest, loveliest man, who knew everything there was to know about manufacturing, and I never had any worries about the fact that because of this man, you know, we won British Manufacturer of the Year. We won every award going, and that was, you know, his expertise showed in that factory. That made us a very attractive proposition, because then we could be manufacturing for other brands within the group Right. And so I was adamant that if they were to take over, I wanted people's jobs to be safe and the British manufacturing to be safe, and so I'd said no to everybody where I didn't feel that that was going to be the case. But with them, you know, yes, people, there were no job cuts, there were no job losses and the manufacturing in the UK was valued, and that was really, really important to me. So that's why I decided look, I'd been on blood pressure monitors 24 hours a day on three occasions.

Speaker 2:

You know that's how stressful it was, and so I just thought enough's enough. I'd done this to make sure that Emily and Max had a great education. And I'd done that, you know, and so much more. You know my family was secure. I was secure, my mom, she was secure. She said you know, you've made it, so I don't have to worry about turning on the heating, you know, and that's what this cost of living crisis has done for so many, and so I'm incredibly grateful to Cambridge Satchel, this incredible brand that you know I created with my mom standing beside me, and it gave us enough security that I could say these are the right people.

Speaker 2:

I'm going to step away and I need to look after myself, I need to feel healthy, I need to take the pressure off, and that's, you know, a really tough decision. Because this brand was my third child, you know I sort of worried about it. No detail was too small for me to get involved in. I would make sure the tone of voice was right that all of the photos, the photo shoots that bag wouldn't be seen there. This person isn't wearing the right clothes for that bag. You know absolutely everything I knew inside out, but it was, you know, sadly had become such a source of stress and that was largely because of what's been going on in the world, which has become a very scary place. And even after the pandemic, you know the price of energy when you're a manufacturer. The energy bills for the factory were absolutely enormous and to safeguard everybody's jobs, it was the right time for me to say look, I have got to step away.

Speaker 1:

How do you now reflect on the brand? I mean, we were talking about how, since you left and I just noticed it too the logos change. The DNA of the product is not yours. Are you able to look at it like a divorce, like a child who's gone their own way, or are you able to emotionally separate yourself and saying it did what it had to do? I'm sad looking at this, but that chapter is closed. How are you able to contextualize that, because it is no longer yours?

Speaker 2:

No. And when the rebranding happened and the bicycle which I really honestly believe, that was just such an authentic Cambridge symbol you get rid of the bike. That was the point. I had to unsubscribe from the email and stop looking. That was the point that I just thought. You know, this is not mine.

Speaker 2:

Now, you know I can't put myself through this because I'm looking at things which weren't my decisions and I have no say over anymore. But it is very much like a child. I mean, cambridge Satchel will always be in my heart, my brand, you know always. But I think that it's going through a very big change that would never have been, you know, my choice, and so I think that the kindest thing. And I wrote a LinkedIn piece about it and just said you know, I can't be that person that's saying, well, I don't approve of this and I don't like this and I don't. You know, they have bought that and it's theirs now to do what they think is right. Do I agree with the direction? No, it's not the Cambridge. Do what they think is right. Do I agree with the direction? No, it's not the Cambridge satchel that I created. But you know, I need to just not look and think, what's next for me? What is but Brykie, are you?

Speaker 1:

able to still walk down the street and see someone wearing the satchel you created and still find joy. Does that?

Speaker 2:

Yes, because I'm sure, yes, because those bags last for decades and you know the bags that. When I see a satchel, that was the bag that my mom and I brought back. You know that is our bag. You know that is a fantastic, fantastic thing and it is very much like a child. If needed help, advice, anything, you know I would always be there to help. I could never turn my back on gingrich satchel. But I cannot bear to read the emails and the tone of voice and look at this, you know new anyway it because I think it would just spoil my feelings and my memories of what we created. It's kind of like if you go back to a place that was really special to you when you're a child, you've got to do that, knowing that it's probably evolved and moved on and changed. And if you see it this different way, maybe that will taint your fond memories of it. So it's that kind of decision that has to be made, julie honestly, it has been a pleasure and beyond.

Speaker 1:

Thank you so much for sharing a journey of the Cambridge Satchel with us. Listen, if there's a movie that's going to be made, I'm going to be behind it and I'm going to be chasing you down it with the camera, along with all the stuff that's growing in your garden behind you, and the Welsh that you're learning right now, because I don't know what I need to eat in Welsh, but I'm sure you're going to tell me because now, with the lessons you're taking. But thank you so much for being part of handbag designer 101, the podcast. You, you're an absolute gem.

Speaker 2:

Well, thank you, and thank you for giving me the opportunity, because the one thing I would say is, with all the ups and downs, with all the roller coasters, where else would I have got the opportunity to do such incredible things? And so, to anybody who is standing looking thinking should I do this? Yes, you should, you know absolutely. Yes, you should, you know absolutely, yes, you should. And just take every challenge, one at a time, because they don't all come at once. Oh they don't?

Speaker 1:

Oh my God. Thank you, julie. Thank you so much. Thank you, thanks for listening. Don't forget to rate and review, and follow us on every single platform at Handbag Designer. Thanks so much. See you next time.

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