Handmade leather accessories brand Kompanero gets a city address

Kompanero has been in the leather accessories segment for only three-years now and yet rapid expansion maybe an understatement to describe its since its inception in 2014. With 250 stores in Australia and 100 stores in the UK, July marked another beginning for the Kolkata-based brand as it forayed into the Tamil Nadu market with its first store in Coimbatore. Over two months in the making, the 417 sq. ft. store which was ready for the public by May finally opened to an eager horde of customers when the Prozone Mall launched earlier this month. 

Vintage wonder 

Keeping in line with their signature vintage appearance, the outlet wears the look of a charming heritage house. Expect to find elements like exposed brick walls, worn-out furniture, dilapidated wall sections, and wooden trunks, most acting as shelves for the store’s collection of leather bags and belts for men and women. “We specialise in making leather accessories that are put through a special ageing treatment that gives it their signature look. Each bag is individually distressed, making every one unique in some way,” explains Indranath Sengupta, Director.

Colour crush  

At the store, you’ll find accessories from their various collections of messenger, portfolio, travel, slings and hand bags. All of which represent the styles that dominate the brand’s design aesthetics—earthy colours of cognac, brown, green and tobacco; minimal accents and embellishments, and a weathered look. “We mostly use vegetable tanned leather,” shares Indranath, adding that the minimalistic designs allow the brand to showcase the quality of the product and the leather. “The patterns (mostly weaves) that we use as surface detailing reflects the craftsmanship that goes into our bags.  Some of them are time-consuming, like our honeycomb weave which takes days to be woven.”

Along for the ride

As the label looks at expanding to Chennai by September, we notice the one thing that is missing from the city franchise is the delightful Kompanero cycle which has been part of all its stores thus far. “We are working internally to see how we can bring the much awaited Kompanero cycle into the store,” he assures us with a smile, conceding that there have been many enquiries for the same. With 10 other stores in the pipeline for the year, the label which launched a footwear line at their Kolkata and Mumbai stores last month is working on building the category before making it available across stores in the country.

Rs 1,500 onwards. At Prozone Mall. Details: 30653111