Italian-made leather handbags, clutches and totes are the next step for Lucchese as the Texas boot maker evolves into a luxury lifestyle brand.
Bankrolled by Dallas private equity magnate John Muse, Lucchese’s strategy also features a 5,000-square-foot store opening in September on Houston’s high street, Westheimer Road. With 3,500 square feet of selling space, the boutique will have a parlor for custom boot design.
The fall leather goods in calf and exotic skins will be sold online and in Lucchese stores for the first season and then offered at wholesale, explained Bill Zeitz, creative director. “They’re made in small factories in Tuscany that do the highest-quality work for Louis Vuitton and others,” he explained. “We want to make sure everything is perfect, from design to construction.”
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Like the streamlined women’s footwear collection that began retailing in March, the bags were designed by Banfi Zambrelli Design Studio in New York. Lucchese has picked up 10 accounts for the line, including Fred Segal, Tootsies and Net-a-Porter.
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The small collection of bags retails from $200 for a saddle leather clutch to $4,000 for a pale aubergine alligator clutch.
“We want to start with key silhouettes and grow from there,” Zeitz said, noting he did not have a sales projection for the collection.
Silhouettes include a tote bag, a briefcase and a saddle bag. Brass and gunmetal stirrup hardware plus bar-tack stitching are signature elements that pay tribute to the company’s 1883 origin in San Antonio as a boot supplier to the U.S. calvary.
The Houston shop will have a homey ambience with upholstered furniture and horse-themed photography and art, Zeitz said.
Lucchese also has stores in Nashville; San Antonio, Tex., and Santa Fe, N.M.