Made in Italy, introduced in NM
High-end leather purse launch tied to Santa Fe Opera
When Gaetano Donizetti’s operatic tragedy “Lucia di Lammermoor” opens at the Santa Fe Opera in July, women touched by the tragic-romantic performance can bury their memories in a new, authentic Italian Lucia Clutch handbag.
The handmade leather clutch comes from artisan workshops in Italy through a limited-edition offering by a Santa Fe startup named italisan, which is timing the bag’s launch to coincide with the operatic premiere of “Lucia.” It marks italisan’s first formal entrance into the U.S. fashion market with made-inItaly purses and handbags that travel from Italian craftsmen direct to the homes of U.S. consumers, all via Santa Fe.
“We’re bringing authentic, Italian leather-making fashion to the market with exclusive collections that would otherwise not be available in the U.S.,” said italisan President Vera Tucci. “... Customers can be sure, with 100 percent transparency, about who made it and where it comes from.”
The clutch’s pre-order price is $499, climbing to $599 after June 30.
The company, formed last year by Tucci and two other Italian entrepreneurs, is staking its future on the appeal of high-end, handmade fashion products that proudly wear a Made in Italy label, particularly ones connected to.
“It’s a fashion brand that’s not just about selling products, but about telling a story about those products,” Tucci said. “That’s why we’re launching our first product in connection with the Santa Fe Opera, because it’s a wonderful story that connects the opera with Italy through the Lucia Clutch.”
Italisan is backed by the High Desert Discovery District, a Santa Fe-based startup accelerator that’s raising $500,000 for the company from local angel investors skilled in the fashion industry. It’s helping italisan build marketing and distribution networks for more product launches elsewhere, including Dallas and New York, said High Desert founder and CEO Michelle Miller.
“We helped italisan align the first launch with the Santa Fe Opera’s brand and image,” Miller said. “We have a lot more people in our network connected with New York, Dallas and other markets where we plan more limited-edition launches. We’ll keep doing them over the next year to build the brand and a following around the country through social media.”
Tucci created italisan in partnership with Italian artisans who face competition from cheap Asian exports. She and her partners built a network of local artisans to supply original products for sale in the U.S.
The partners chose New Mexico as their stateside beachhead after Tucci established a professional support network here. She presented her ideas at the weekly 1 Million Cups event in Albuquerque last September. The local web design and communication firms Internet Crossroads and Siarza Social Digital helped build the company website and social media platform.
All U.S. operations will be handled from Santa Fe, where the company expects to employ about 30 by next year.
Italisan is targeting millennial consumers, who constitute about 45 percent of today’s fashion market, Tucci said.