As 2016 quickly comes to a close we wanted to celebrate the end of our first year with a blog about our history. We get a number of questions asking about our background and the origin of Beau Satchelle.
So in the beginning…destiny weaved her way into our lives.
Co-founders, April Bayles (AJ) and T. Michael met in late 2007 and discovered they shared similar passions and interests. After countless discussions about the love and challenges of being an entrepreneur and eventually T. Michael sharing his business model of a luxury brand, a partnership was developed and Beau Satchelle was conceived.
A native Detroiter and proud University of Michigan graduate, at a very young age, April adored anything to do with fashion…clothes, hair, accessories. Taught by her Mom how to sew and had inherited a talent for drawing from her Dad, she dreamed of becoming a high end fashion designer. However, life happened and she became distracted with other interests and put her love for fashion on the backburner. Her experiences through college and various jobs along with her serial entrepreneurship ventures prepared her for the opportunity to come full circle and work on building a business brand that focuses on the lifestyle of luxury.
T. Michael, a Michigan native. While in college, had an initial urge to explore the art of leather crafting was when he was unable to find quality belts on a college student’s budget. So, after much research which entailed finding the local leather store and reading books on belt making, purchasing and using the right tools was the first step in what was then a necessity gone hobby to what is now an emerging business.
Later in life, the situation reoccurred with the need of another briefcase after his career took him through several ‘brand named’ cases where each only survived 2-3 years tops. He desired high quality craftsmanship without having to spend a fortune then turning the corner to find the same product elsewhere for less. The searching was not only frustrating, it took up quite a bit of time and he decided to have a go at it again and create something for himself.
T. Michael’s First Bespoke ‘Hand-Stitched’ Leather Briefcase!
Having an Engineering background and using an analytical process, he embraced the challenge by way of the internet and started inquiring about the art of leather work and leather crafting. T. Michael became a tenacious student of You Tube, to learn a very honored and old traditional art form: hand-stitching.
As his skills grew, he became more and more amazed with the results of what two needles and waxed thread could make when freshly cut leather is stitched together. How he lays out the leather hide, cut evenly shaped, sized and accurate pieces, add some stitching holes and build something to hold personal items and valuables is rewarding and humbling.
We chose the name Beau Satchelle to pay homage the old world European art of leather crafting. “Beau” in French translates to “beautiful” and Satchelle, pronounced like Michelle where the ‘T’ is silent, is a play on the word Satchel or Handbag; thus the translation “Beautiful Handbag”. We build beautiful handbags!
Our guiding principle is “Bespoke Luxury for the Discerning Individual” which stands for meticulously handcrafted luxury for those who have had the latest Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Michael Kors etc, and want something different from the normal. We also cater to those who desire to express their individuality or want an heirloom luxury good that has functionality to fit their everyday lifestyle.
With our vision, passion and craftsmanship, we always keep the professional and the connoisseur in mind. And, the gratification we feel when an owner of one of our luxury goods says “I just love my new Beau Satchelle” is what sets us apart because each hand-stitched bespoke piece has T. Michael’s stitch signature throughout.
We are extremely proud to our history with our readers and look forward to the upcoming year and all the possibilities and opportunities that await us. -AJ
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