Leather as a material is quite versatile; it’s like a clean slate where creative minds download their ideas and infuse life into them. It’s what explains the great number of brands out there in the market. But leather being a luxurious material, requires in-depth expertise in handling it, a discerning eye to understand the trends of the market and skillful hands to tie it all together into a masterpiece. Looking at their bags and reading their brand story, I found evidence of all the above in töhl.
A customary peek into the brand’s history follows. Founder Manish Kawlra‘s association with leather products dates back to the last years of the previous millennium when he started with one of India’s leading leather conglomerates of the time – the Gaitonde Group. He then diversified into his own company Shoeline, making shoes solely for export. töhl was born in 2006, after Manish honed his skill of launching consumer brands in India, and was launched as a high quality leather accessories brand only in 2013, but started gaining momentum in August 2017 when it was relaunched on a large scale with the creation of its website.
They have launched bags for women currently – the modern Indian woman who balances her multitude roles with finesse, who has an acute sense of style and who realizes her potential to the fullest. Töhl has the entire gamut of styles covered – handbags, shoulder bags, totes, bucket bags, backpacks, slings, cross body bags, valises, satchels, clutches and wallets – and served in three distinct collections, each with a distinct purpose – Urbania for work styles, Boheme for casual and fun and Getaway that is travel oriented. Their color palette and shapes are in step with the global hot trends – tassels, metallics, solid saturated hues, color-blocking, to name a few. In my opinion, their strength lies in their sumptuous leather texture – that is soft, full grained and milled – and the sheer variety of bags they offer.
Practical aspects are thoughtfully baked into the designs – a zipped pocket on the outside, crossbody straps, pouches on the inside for phone and other paraphernalia, a key fob and metal feet at the base. töhl dexterously balances practicality with the present day’s style sensibilities and quality of the bees knees. And that is a holy trifecta!
The men’s range is close on heels, due to be launched early next year, for which they have roped in a renowned designer from New York.
I was piqued by the name itself and delving deeper, realized it is a Tamil word for skin. Now, not many people know that I was born in Chennai, the then Madras, and speak reasonably good Tamil as my entire parental side was born and brought up there. Hence, discovering the brand felt so much closer to home! Ok – was tempted to sneak in that little trivia about me! 🙂
töhl’s bags are proudly manufactured in India, at their manufacturing facility in Chennai. Their entire process of leather handling is compliant with international standards. They place paramount importance on the artisanal and handcrafted aspect of bag making. Drawing expertise from their export house, töhl sure has a firm finger on the pulse of world fashion. Trust them to deliver the best of global trends at Indian prices. I am seriously looking forward to try their bags at the first available opportunity!
You can check out their entire collection at their website tohl.in or reach their customer care at 8300 112 000.
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