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SERIEN PERSPEKTIVWECHSEL • CHANGE OF PERSPECTIVE

Arbeitsmotto •work motto M rs Schulze-Tsatsas, after your studies of architecture, you were very successful
in architectural journalism and event management. What gave you the idea
of quitting your secure job and founding an exclusive label for leather handbags?
„Context over dogma.“ I was very happy in my job yet there was always the wish to work more creatively. After
my husband, whose family background is focused on crafting fine bags, was almost get-
ting desperate looking for a modern and high-quality men’s bag, we sat down to design
a bag for him. This was the first step – additional designs followed as well as plenty of
positive feedback and thus the idea of founding Tsatsas was born.

r Your father-in-law has decades of experience in leather processing. Your husband
as an industrial designer and you as an architect contribute a feeling for design, zeit-
geist and brand awareness. Tsatsas seems to be a label which profits from the input
by various generations?
Tsatsas indeed reflects the skills and the attitude of various generations. Above all, how-
ever, the brand profits from the openness, the curiosity and the passion which all the
participants bring to the process. One first has to understand the craftsmanship of
leather processing in its entirety in order to know what is possible to make or where
the limits are to what is feasible. Which does not mean that the limits cannot be opened
up or overcome for implementing the design, the aesthetic signature of a product – this
approach makes a Tsatsas product what it is.

r How much courage is needed for taking the plunge into self-employment?
It takes a lot of courage. We took the first steps towards independence while we both
were still working in our steady jobs. After work and at the weekends, we continuously
refined our idea of a modern brand. But at a certain point we realized that we had to
pay our full attention to Tsatsas for bringing the brand to life.
Coen Grey: eines von vielen formschönen Modellen • Coen Grey: one of the many elegant models
r Apart from their upscale appearance, Tsatsas bag also capture with their timeless-
Einzigartig: Jede handgefertigte Tasche ... • Unique: Each handcrafted bag ...
ness. The details are extremely restricted. These are also attributes which charac-
terize high-quality architecture. Do you see a connection?
It goes without saying that there are strong connections and influences at work between
architecture, design and fashion. The way of approaching a design, whether of a bag, a
building or furniture is fundamentally identical even though the dimensions differ. In our
opinion, a whole design often relies on the details so that we invest a great amount of
time in their development. It is often only nuances which decide the aesthetic quality.

r Every bag is hand-made. How important is the aspect of manufacture?
Extremely important. Apart from our standard of the highest quality for our products, man-
ufacture in the true sense of the work also gives us high flexibility. We work very closely
with our production plant in Offenbach am Main and together implement the designs of
our bags and accessories. In this way and already at an early stage, we can start the
detailed elaboration of first ideas and still intervene in the process, test and change.

r When designing your bags, do you have an actual use or user in your mind’s eye?
Which means are you thinking about for which content, for which occasion and for
which type of person the bag is intended?
While designing, you always automatically have a user in mind yet not necessarily in the
... besitzt ihre eigene Produktionsnummer. • ... has its own production number.
form of a specific image but rather as a kind of DNA. We strongly focus on the attitude
of the user, his or her needs and interests. The purpose and the potential content of a
bag certainly also play a role but satisfying functional requirements is a given for us.

r How many employees are today working for Tsatsas and what is the division of
work between you and your husband like?
Tsatsas currently has a team of six people. The division of work between my husband
and me is fluctuating. He is more in charge of the creative part and the production while
I take care of the distribution, the communication and the focus of the brand. But we
engage in constant dialogue and are both involved in every element of our work.

r How did you set up your distribution? Where can your bags be bought?
For us, Tsatsas was an international brand from the start. From its foundation in 2012
until today, we have looked worldwide for stores which, in our opinion, suit our brand
and our products, share our aesthetic as well as quality values and pass these on to
their customers. In this way, we are fortunate to be able to work with stores such as
Andreas Murkudis in Berlin, The Apartment Store in Zurich, Tomorrowland in Japan or
the SSENSE online stores.

036 • AIT 1/2.2017