Official APRIL IN PARIS (custom leather artisan) Thread: Feedback, Pics, Reviews

At least her students do the handstitching, versus all machine stitched



ThinkDerm said:

At least her students do the handstitching, versus all machine stitched

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This is true, though from what was posted above it looks like there is some machine-stitched stuff there as well.

Of course, I don't expect that Bea should have to chain herself to her leatherworking stand until she's 100 years old; I'm glad she's gotten to a position and customer base that will allow her to train others while hopefully getting a little more freedom to enjoy the fruits of her labor.

That being said, I've never really considered her shop a "brand," such that it would be worth paying a premium simply for her name on an item (with said item stitched by someone else... quite possibly a person with only a year's experience).

At the ultra-premium price point, there IS a lot of competition... and at the end of the day what made the whole thing worth it was Bea herself. Some brands are very much tied to their namesake; take that away, and even big global brands (Gianfranco Ferre, Helmut Lang, etc.) have trouble exciting their customers.



rach2jlc said:

This is true, though from what was posted above it looks like there is some machine-stitched stuff there as well.

Of course, I don't expect that Bea should have to chain herself to her leatherworking stand until she's 100 years old; I'm glad she's gotten to a position and customer base that will allow her to train others while hopefully getting a little more freedom to enjoy the fruits of her labor.

That being said, I've never really considered her shop a "brand," such that it would be worth paying a premium simply for her name on an item (with said item stitched by someone else... quite possibly a person with only a year's experience).

At the ultra-premium price point, there IS a lot of competition... and at the end of the day what made the whole thing worth it was Bea herself. Some brands are very much tied to their namesake; take that away, and even big global brands (Gianfranco Ferre, Helmut Lang, etc.) have trouble exciting their customers.

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what other brands exist at the ultra-premium price point?

was Bea really worth the price she charged? she was/is at hermes pricing. for that price, often better to go with hermes in my opinion.



ThinkDerm said:

what other brands exist at the ultra-premium price point?

was Bea really worth the price she charged? she was/is at hermes pricing. for that price, often better to go with hermes in my opinion.

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Sorry for the multi-edited wall of text here; I want to choose my words carefully in order to be clear and not cause drama.

To your first point, AiP is only about half the price of Hermes at US Retail. At the time of having my bag made in late 2010, I felt it was worth the price. Would I feel that way now knowing she wouldn't be the one making it? No, honestly. I'd probably only do it if there were a substantial reduction in the price. Would I be really disappointed if I found out that even back then Bea didn't actually make my bag? Well, yes. The brand is/was "sold" as being the work of a true artisan, Hermes trained, years of experience blagh blagh blagh. Even the pics on the website are/were of her at her stand punching holes into the leather, etc.

To the other question, at the "ultra premium" price point, I was thinking GRAAE Copenhagen, Ohba, etc.: not bespoke, but excellent quality, great service, and a very substantial bag for $1500-2000. I'm also sure that they could probably do some small custom tweaks without much hassle or extreme $$$ (just speculating).

There may be machine stitching involved with the above, but "hand stitched" by itself really doesn't merit a premium in my book unless its accompanied by a long work history and a personal, intimate customer experience. With a good RTW brand, not only will you halve the price, but you'll also have an established design history AND economies of scale to ensure good QC and functionality. What you won't have is that personal experience/relationship with the artisan... but now it looks like you probably won't have that with AiP either, at least not with the namesake.

The other thing that people often forget about bespoke leather goods is that one ends up waiting months, spending $$$, and having outrageous expectations often to end up with something that is high quality, but ultimately inferior to its RTW competition in terms of design and functionality (a good RTW would have long since worked out the 'bugs' in a bag like weight, handle wear, size of pockets, etc.). Your bespoke bag is just that; it's a one-time deal and you have to live with your choices. As such, even at its best bespoke isn't a process for everybody. And without the subtle perks that make it a rewarding PROCESS.. it honestly becomes a questionable use of $$$ and time.

This thread is very informative. Thank you to those that have taken the time to share their experiences and more up to date information on the brand. There is a lot of value added in having more information on artisan segment brands that wouldn't be readily accessible without the collective contributions here.

I looked at both April and Duret Paris and preferred the work I saw from the latter (purely based on design) but was unable to find much information on the forum. Is there anyone familiar with the company? If so, are your impressions similar to those considered in the post directly above? I think it's a very valid point; though it may be less relevant for a fairly standard commission such as the one I'm considering: a belt.

I'm specifically interested in commissioning an alligator/ alligator nubuck belt and the quotes I received from Duret were in the vicinity of €1360-1560 so I'd like to perform some diligence before taking a (for me, personally) deep plunge.

Thank you in advance for anyone taking the time time consider/field the question.

Hard to believe it has been over TEN years since I commissioned my AiP bespoke bag... but I just wanted to update the thread. Though I don't use the bag everyday (I rotate with several other bags)... the bag is still in perfect shape, only better in that the leather has softened over time. It's truly a "lifetime" bag and the stitching and leather have held up over ten years of use very, very well.

I will try to update at some point with some current pics of the bag. You'll be surprised that it still looks almost new (I do treat/condition the bag regularly).