Lady LUX

Leona’s first name might not ring a bell, but her last name likely will.

Leona Erziak, along with her sister Hasna Erziak, is the owner and designer of Lena Erziak handbags, which have developed a cult following by New York and Los Angeles boutiques for their use of exotic materials in bold hues.

As real estate investors in Europe, Leona and Hasna always had a love for fashion, but never saw it manifesting outside their personal style choices. They definitely didn’t see a luxury handbag line on the horizon.

“We really considered it as a hobby and not for making a living,” Leona said.

When married to a music producer in Paris, Leona would hang out in the studio, and people would approach her to style French celebrities.

“He would have artists, and I’d be there in the studio before shooting and they’d be like ‘Please help me put something together,’” she said.

When the market took a turn for the worse, the sisters decided to take advantage of their love of handbags and start a company.

“We thought, for the first time in our lives, we’re going to do something we really, really love,” she said. “It’s not about numbers. It’s about the true love we have for our handbags and accessories.”

Three years ago, Lena Erziak was born.

What’s in the name? Both sisters preferred the other’s name, so they compromised and combined the two into one word: Lena.

The two sisters divvy up the responsibilities. Hasna tends to pay more attention to production, whereas Leona has her mind on marketing. Both, however, have a heavy hand in the design of each handbag. Sometimes a continent apart – Leona is based in New York and Paris, and Hasna travels to Italy frequently – they often come together to go over their sketches and ideas for upcoming collections.

“We don’t see each other for a month or six weeks … It’s very exciting to discover what (Hasna) did,” she said. “We (would) have a big conversation like, ‘This one is awesome … Which texture, what is the direction?’ We have little nasty fights, like any sisters, like ‘What were you thinking when you did this one?’ and joking around.”

It’s no wonder the siblings came together for the company. After all, designing is in their blood. Their mother, a courtier, pushed the girls to go into business because of the struggles artists typically face.

“She never became a Coco Chanel, even though she’s even more talented than Coco Chanel,” Leona said of her mother.

Even though the sisters followed their mother’s advice, both with (still) successful real estate careers, they couldn’t negate their love for art.

“It’s something we had inside,” the designer said.

Lena Erziak handbags could be easily deemed works of art. The attention to detail, down to the sheen of the hardware and the curve of a handle, is meticulous. Each piece looks especially made for the wearer, with unique elements such as a leather chain-mail bow, ostrich leather with velvet accenting, or a tortoiseshell strap.

The Fall/Winter 2010 Collection is now on sale and ready to be scooped up by accessory addicts. They will preview the Spring 2011 Collection in January and move the product into their retailers in early spring.

Where does Leona see Lena Erziak going?

“Anywhere it will allow us to go and even more than that.”

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Fashion / Features