LOCAL, LUXURY LEATHER WITH INGA ATELIER
The Insider SA meets the creative director and founder of Inga Atelier, Inga Gubeka.
Growing up in a small village in Mthatha, Inga’s love for design started when he would play with clay and make toys from wire.
He, however, didn’t realise it until he moved to Durban for high school and his passion for design was ignited.
Inga started making furniture and then stumbled across the idea of making wooden bags. That is where his journey began.
After his wooden bags gained popularity, Inga set his sights on another textile – leather.
“I always wanted to create a brand that can be recognised globally as an African brand specialising in luxury leather goods,” explains the creative.
That’s when the idea of Inga Atelier was birthed.
“The production of luxury goods is important to me [because] first of all, we don’t have global brands that best represent our beautiful country,” he explains.
Inga highlights that when you look at South African malls, you see a lot of international brands.
He believes that it is important for local brands to occupy these malls.
Inga’s design process is rather simple and straightforward. He begins by drawing a design on paper before sitting down with his pattern maker to see how it is going to look before they start producing it.
Inga Atelier caters for a broad market and their designs are predominantly unisex.
“My goal as a brand is to take our brand on a global scale…we really want to be one of the best brands that comes out of South Africa.”
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Purchase your own Inga Atelier luxury bag here: inga-atelier.com
