How strathberry became the newest it bag

THIS time last year, Leeanne Hundleby had a bright idea. She and husband Guy had recently founded a leather handbag label, Strathberry, in their home city of Edinburgh and were desperate to get their brand on the arms of the A-list.

Their first target? Meghan Markle, Prince Harry’s glamorous and everso-fashionable then-girlfriend. “I’d watched Suits obsessively and always thought that she was stylish,” says Leeanne, 46.

“I routinely wrote to her agent and stylist and then, on a whim, we sent a few pieces.”

Fast forward 12 months and that turned out to be the best decision Leeanne ever made.

For the Duchess of Sussex has carried not one, but three of those bags on major royal occasions, catapulting the fledgling company on to the world stage.

Not only are Strathberry’s bags, which cost between £225 and £995 (between R4 180 and R18 500), stocked at Selfridges and global department store Nordstrom, but the brand is launching its first bricks-andmortar store, which opens its doors this week, in London’s illustrious Burlington Arcade.

Joining brands such as Mulberry and Penhaligon’s, and sitting between Chanel and Manolo Blahnik in the Mayfair arcade, there’s no clearer sign that Strathberry – a name still little-known beyond an elite band of fashionistas – has been propelled into the designer handbag league.

“It’s a huge step for us,” says Leeanne. “It is a bit daunting, but we’re excited. It’s a beautiful spot and an honour to be next door to such well-known brands. It’s beyond anything either of us ever imagined.”

Much has been made of the so-called “Meghan effect”, the pull of the Duchess when it comes to trends – but Leeanne and Guy were one step ahead of most, approaching the Palace a month before the royal engagement was even announced.

Since then, their experience of “Princess Power” has been nothing short of a whirlwind and there is no doubt in their minds that Meghan is behind their success.

When she appeared with her first Strathberry bag, the £525 tricolour Midi Tote (strathberry.com), which she carried last December in Nottingham on her first outing as Harry’s fiancée, the phones in their Edinburgh HQ didn’t stop ringing.

“Within 11 minutes of the photos surfacing, the handbag sold out,” says Leeanne. “Visitors to strathberry.com were up by around 5 000%. Over the next few days, 3 500 shoppers signed up for stock updates.”

Meghan’s second outing with a Strathberry was on her first trip to Scotland, where she chose the £425 bottle green East/West Mini for a walkabout in Edinburgh in February.

The bag sold out in minutes, while sales of other Strathberry products soared by 300% and the website was inundated by frenzied shoppers.

It was the same story in July when Meghan carried the £525 Midi Tote in tan leather on her first overseas tour to Ireland.

The overnight interest in the brand was “scary”, admits Guy, 46. “We’re a pretty private family. We suddenly had interview requests from around the world.” For six months afterwards, the couple refused to have their photo taken, so abashed were they by the media maelstrom.

“It was a very busy time,” laughs Leeanne, who, having juggled motherhood – the couple have four children – with the demands of running her own company, is used to multi-tasking.

Strathberry is a kitchen table business, having started as an idea on a holiday, where Leeanne and

Guy found themselves enthralled by hand crafted leather goods on offer at markets across rural Spain.

On their return home, in 2013, they hatched a plan: to combine this craftsmanship with the spirit of Scotland, which didn’t have an internationally known luxury accessories brand.

“There are so many brands throwing themselves at Meghan, and she could choose any of them,” says Leeanne. To have Strathberry in the mix suggests she knows a little about where we come from and what we do. She’s not the sort of woman to pick up any old bag because it goes with her outfit. She values quality.”

Certainly, quality is key in Strathberry’s bags, which are crafted by artisans – whose skills have been passed down through generations. Each style is sketched by designers in Scotland and then hewn from the softest Spanish leather.

Thirty-six pieces are hand-cut and sewn together with 3 500 stitches, before 21 bits of brass hardware are fitted, including the bar closure over the handle, which has become the brand’s signature.

With such attention to detail, it’s a wonder the Hundlebys have managed to keep their prices so low.

But, having begun the business with modest savings, then raising £125 000 through crowdfunding, they are all too aware of the importance of ensuring their bags, costing on average around £300, are relatively affordable.

When you compare this to the cost of a handbag at one of its new neighbours in Burlington Arcade, it is here that Strathberry has a clear advantage. A Mulberry Bayswater tote, for example, starts at £895, while a Chanel clutch costs £1 350.

Will this plucky Scottish brand otherwise hold its own in the cutthroat world of London fashion? Leeanne is quietly optimistic.

“We’ve never taken anything for granted and we’re not starting now,” she says. “This may be our only shop, or it may be the first of many. We’re excited about what that means for the future.”

Meghan may have paved the way for success, but they’re not resting on their laurels just yet. Fresh designs are in the pipeline, with seven new shapes set to launch in the New Year.

Meanwhile, Leeanne is keeping schtum on whether or not there may be yet another Strathberry in the royal wardrobe.

Handily, their new shop is just 15 minutes’ drive from Kensington Palace, so she’s hoping a very special customer might pop in.