KURTIS PAUL
I’ve teamed up with luxury British Brand Kurtis Paul, specialising in beautifully crafted men’s bags and accessories.
Kurtis Paul aim to bring high quality products to the masses and target a demographic they refer to as ‘The Modern Gentleman’.
Launching in 2015 with their leather collection, since Kurtis Paul have expanded and released their leather accessories and canvas collection, this was only made available recently and is crafted from a luxurious 20oz, super thick canvas. This was chosen to give a harder wearing, higher quality feel.
The brand is big on personalisation, tailoring names to their accessories and giving their products a unique personality.
Kurtis Paul was created for the Modern Gentleman, this is someone who as a sense of purpose, wants to have a positive impact on the world and is motivated and driven to be at their best. It’s someone who holds themselves in high regards, has a high self worth and is determined to become the best version of himself. Much of his down time is spent on self development and he enjoys the knowledge that is received through reading factual literature. He understands that health is an important aspect of his routine and a health body lets him perform at his best. The modern gentleman has an interest in travel and the experience of different cultures. He knows that it is our differences that make us unique and by studying different cultures he can gain an understanding of peoples motivators and driver, he calls on this knowledge to ensure he helps other gain reach the potential. Helping others is an important aspect of his working manta, he believes that to receive you must first give and he enjoys the satisfaction of helping others.
I had a chat to Lloyd, co-founder over at Kurtis Paul, check out the interview below
Q) What made you want to start Kurtis Paul?
Kurtis Paul was started by two brothers with a desire to express their creativity and was born following many extended periods of travel.
Both Kurtis and I have spent many a day on the road travelling for work and are keen backpackers. It is fair to say we have tried, and tested, many different luggage products. We were intrigued by the lack of quality in the market and were quality was present there was a large price tag associated. It has been our aim, since starting Kurtis Paul to focus on why we do things. For example; we rationalise Kurtis Paul not as a fashion brand but more as a brand who solves the luggage requirements of today’s men.
I believe that starting our design process with the intent on solving a problem leads us to focus more and ensures our products are as good as they can be. For example; our canvas duffle bag comes with both carry handles and shoulder straps (not unusual) but by thinking through how this bag would be used we decided to make all handles removable. The wearer generally has a preference on carry style and in most cases the other handles are redundant. In another example; we know there is an importance to allow backpack straps to be adjustable but became frustrated by how the excess strap was left to dangle. On our recently launched canvas backpack we made a simple alteration so the straps can be tucked away and kept neat.
Q) What would you mark as your biggest success to date?
I think our biggest success is the happiness that starting Kurtis Paul has brought both Kurtis and I. We truly enjoy the work we do and feel this is more valuable than anything else. As you would probably agree, being creatively minded there is a huge sense of satisfaction that is received by seeing the product of hard work. It is this satisfaction that keeps driving the team to move forward.
Q) Can you describe more about your personality in naming of items, what is the story behind the name(s)?
You will notice all our bags have a name, we consciously chose to inject some personality into each of them and have given them a persona as to how we expect them to be used and for what type of person. For example the canvas collection includes the ‘Arnold Duffle Bag’, ‘Columbus Backpack’ and ‘Donald Beach Bag’.
The persona of each bag was chosen as our way to inject some fun and character into the product range. It goes back to the earlier statement that Kurtis Paul focuses on why we do things. Each bag was designed with a clear vision on how it would be used and the type of person that would enjoy the creations.
The personalities are our articulation of this, we wanted people to read them and think ‘yes, that sounds like me’, we also wanted the persons to act as a motivation.
Self improvement is a huge part of who Kurtis Paul are, we believe that life is one continual journey in which we learn and grow as people. We hoped that our customers would read the personas and it would spark some motivation within them, increase their energy levels and give them some purpose. For example; if you’re using a bag named after Arnold Schwarzenegger your certainly not going to ’take it easy’ next time you’re in the gym…
I want to personally thank the guys over at Kurtis Paul for creating this insightful interview and providing us with an insider take on the world of luxury luggage. To check out their products, click the links below!
Columbus Backpack:
https://www.kurtispaul.com/product/columbus-canvas-backpack-desert-sand/
https://www.kurtispaul.com/product/columbus-canvas-backpack-overcast-grey/
Donald Beach Bag:
https://www.kurtispaul.com/product/donald-canvas-drawstring-beach-bag-desert-sand/
https://www.kurtispaul.com/product/donald-canvas-drawstring-beach-bag-overcast-grey/
Arnold Duffle Bag:
https://www.kurtispaul.com/product/arnold-canvas-duffle-bag-desert-sand-cream/
https://www.kurtispaul.com/product/arnold-canvas-duffle-bag-overcast-grey/
