Kate Spade

International fashion house Kate Spade is home to one of the most-loved luxury handbags in the world. After revolutionizing handbags into a more practical fashion 14 years ago, the New York-based company continues to capture the global high-end market of women who demands a great deal of style in their most functional handy accessory— the handbags.

For 41-year-old company owner and well-renowned fashion designer Kate Spade, functionality and style best defines a Kate Spade handbag.

“Nothing beats a practical, elegant tote. It will never be outdated,” Mrs. Spade was quoted as saying in an online feature article about her company. .

True enough, the Kate Spade handbags continues to flourish in the market for more than a decade now and remains to be the “it” designer handbags of women who itch for practicality and upscale style.

Feeling The Market

Kate Spade’s successful attempt in developing a unique brand of trendy handbags began when she was working as a fashion editor for defunct Mademoiselle magazine, which was based in New York City.

In her seven-year stint in the women’s magazine since 1986, Kate, who was then single at that time and carries the name Katherine Noel Brosnahan, noticed the lack of stylish, practical handbags for women.

During that time, women would just have succumb themselves to pricey but impossible handbags, which offer style but little in functionality, to get that great fashionable look. Some women, on the other hand, would have to carry user-friendly handbags but sacrifice fashion.

The idea to combine the two needed elements in creating a revolutionary brand of trendy handbags came simultaneously with Kate’s union to advertising creative director Andy Spade.

Kate resigned from her job in Mademoiselle, where she last served as a senior fashion editor heading the accessory section, and ventured into fashion accessory business with her husband that would address the need of the market during that time.

The Classic Kate

With the synchronized creative talents of the couple, who both have artistic design professional backgrounds, came the first Kate Spade Handbags launched in January 1993.

The Kate Spade brand debuted with a line of classically shaped handbags in satin-finished black nylon bearing the Kate Spade name on a black-and-white logo. This black nylon handbag now known as the Classic Kate Handbag was the “it” bag of the 90’s but still being offered and remains a hit in today’s high-end market.

Among the elegant Classic Kate Handbag lines available in the market today include The Pia (a small, zip top shoulder bag), The Tracy Bucket (a roomy, handheld tote with a grosgrain tie enclosure), The Claire (a small, sharp line shoulder strap tote), The Medium Shopper (a rectangular zip top tote which is available in short or long handles), The Sam (a two-handled tote style bag with magnetic enclosure), The Small Messenger (a versatile bag with a sleek flap enclosure) and The Backpack (a roomy exterior pocket and zip around top enclosure).

These bags have now also evolved from exclusive black to different chic colors of evergreen, cranberry, navy, and deep chocolate.

New Hot Additions

From silhouette black nylon handbags came the Kate Spade leather handbag collections to keep up with the dynamic handbag market. Fabric handbags were also released and the latest displays fresh eclectic mixtures of smooth sophistication and fun frills to give the “playful preppy” look for women of different lifestyle and taste.

Kate Spade has come up with shimmery but versatile clutches that can be paired with either jeans or evening gowns. Cinched bags also wowed the market. Kate Spade was also very practically creative with its soft boar skin bags with rolled handles and gold rivet accents and hardware, tumbled cowhide mini satchels with spaghetti strap handles, rich colored calf-skin hobos, and neutral canvas totes with colored handles and accents.

The Rewards

The overwhelming number of patron of Kate Spade, which has now grown into a $200 million business, is enough reward for its founders and couple Andy and Kate Spade.

But the company’s creative geniuses got the attention of one of America’s respected design award giving body. The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) honored designer Kate Spade twice for her classic and new designs bestowing her the New Fashion Talent in Accessories title in 1996 and the Best Accessory Designer of the Year in 1998.

In 1999, Kate Spade handbags were exhibited at the Cooper Hewitt Museum for the first National Design Triennial Celebration of American design excellence.
Through the years, the Kate Spade Company had its challenging share of ups and downs in the industry but managed to be resilient. It has now grown to offer a full collection of fashion handbags, as well as lifestyle categories such as home accessories, which also garnered prestigious design awards, and other lifestyle categories including footwear, eyewear and even baby carriages, among others. Jewelry is now being eyed as the company’s new venture.

Kate Spade’s edge designs of “it” handbags for women could be the company’s greatest strength in its brandishing success. In fact, the company has launched stringent anti-counterfeiting activities against fake Kate Spade handbags not just to protect its products but its customers who they could never afford to falter in giving the real Kate Spade handbag experience.