Success is in the bag for these Tel Aviv designers
OH MY God,” shrieked Israeli designer Sivan Moshkovitz, 35, when she heard that bags from her label, Complet, would be in Browns boutique this spring. Meanwhile, her business partners, Leonora Fuhrer-Agmon, 31 and Emily Whyte Meridor, 36, danced around their compact Tel Aviv studio.
Their excitement is understandable. The go-to fashion boutique in South Molton Street, founded by the Burstein family in 1970, has a strong track record in discovering young talent like Alexander McQueen and bringing international designers to Britain — including Giorgio Armani and Ralph Lauren.
“The geometric shapes are unique, compared to anything else on the market right now,” says Browns’ womenswear buyer for bags, Holly Tenser, who spotted Complet’s designs on Instagram earlier this year. “And what I love is that the brand is instantly identifiable.”
The signature envelope clutches with a distinctive round handle are available in assorted shades and leathers in store and online. Consider the smokey blue version in glossy patent leather
(£385). Then there are the soft blush or cream belt bags in buttery Cream Neomi canvas tote £470 Pink Valery Micro bag £360 leather (£360) as well as boxy cross body bags (£525) and sculpted totes in a smart canvas and leather mix (£525).
“I try to make [the bags] fun in the colour combination and materials,” says Moshkovitz, who started the label in 2013, selling bags to family and friends from home. “I have a three-year-old boy and my life is pretty much my work and my kid so all of my inspiration is around kids’ stuff.”
For example, there are cartoon coloured backpacks in acid green or mustard yellow with a shiny metallic zip detailing, or a satchel with a slinky leopard print and glam suede twists.
Design details like the round handle or tag re-appear across different styles to highlight the bags’ craftsmanship, says the London-born, chief operating officer and creative director, Fuhrer-Agmon. “It’s not easy to sew these kind of handles by hand,” she says.
Moshkovitz worked for a year in the New York studio of Israeli womenswear designer, Yigal Azrouël after graduating in fashion design from the Shenkar College of Engineering and Design in 2009 and this inspired her to run her own label.
“I saw how hard he worked and he gave me a lot of discipline about how you need to manage your own business and how to work with people.”
But she couldn’t do it alone. Instead, she recruited partners with different expertise to help the label grow. Firstly, former colleague, Fuhrer-Agmon, who capitalises on her digital know-how, looking after social media and e-commerce as well as local private clients.
Then, two years ago, Manhattan born Whyte Meridor joined after moving to Tel Aviv from Paris to marry her Israeli lawyer boyfriend. She has added fashion and finance credentials.
“We bring different perspectives so when we want to make a decision we tackle each one from different angles and challenge each other,” says Whyte Meridor, whose strategy to sell the bags through international outlets only paid off quickly with e-tailer, Shopbop, the first to take their bags almost 18 months ago. Others, such as Asian department store, Lane Crawford, followed.
“Emily was our entry into the international [fashion] market because she knew it,” says Moshkovitz of Whyte Meridor, who spent almost seven years merchandising for French luxury house, Kenzo in Paris and for Diane von Furstenberg’s eponymous label in New York. She also has more than five years’ financial analysis experience with JP Morgan Chase and more.
It is tough for fashion designers based in Israel to break into British — and global— stores as, says Moshkovitz, “there is a lot of money to put into it.” The partners kick-started the company with their savings.
“In Israel, there is no organisation that pushes fashion [such as the British Fashion Council] or gives funding from the state or privately like we have for hi tech or start-ups… so fashion is not in the mainstream.”
Making the bags in Italy has helped, too, as “our quality needs to be the same as all the other [luxury] brands that Browns have,” says Moshkovitz, who found the Venetian factory during a cross-country road trip meeting various outlets.
Complet was at Paris Fashion Week, which ended on Tuesday. “It’s been good. We’ve seen a 40 per cent increase in visitors since the last Paris Fashion Week in September,” says Whyte Meridor. “People have been steadily coming in for appointments from opinion-leading boutiques in the US and Europe as well as department stores from the US and Europe.” The long-term plan is to extend into a lifestyle brand —as the name implies — offering a complete set of different objects.
Fashion is not in the mainstream in Israel
Complet bags are available at Browns, 24-27 South Molton Street,