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FEATURE<br />
Bags of style<br />
A LICHFIELD HANDBAG COMPANY IS MAKING WAVES WITH THEIR QUIRKY DESIGNS WHICH HAVE<br />
FANS AS FAR AFIELD AS AUSTRALIA AND AMERICA. AMY NORBURY DISCOVERS MORE<br />
LUKE GRIFFITHS-JONES AND<br />
JAMES HEATHCOTE ARE THE<br />
FOUNDERS OF LICHFIELD<br />
BAG BRAND YOSHI<br />
When James Heathcote and Luke Griffiths-Jones<br />
spot a customer wearing one of their designs, it’s still<br />
a cause for excitement. They often spot a familiar<br />
bag in the local supermarket, or wandering down the<br />
street on the arm of a proud owner. The distinctive<br />
designs, after all, are certainly eye-catching.<br />
“It’s lovely to see people out and about with our<br />
bags,” says James. “We always want to stop people<br />
and say ‘hi’ when we see them with our products.”<br />
The duo are the brains behind Yoshi, an innovative<br />
handbag and leather accessories brand which is so<br />
proud of its Lichfield roots that the city’s name forms<br />
part of the company logo.<br />
“Radley has London, Kate Spade has New York, and<br />
we have Lichfield,” laughs 35-year-old James.<br />
And while they often spot Yoshi fans in and around<br />
their hometown, James and Luke have encountered<br />
their products in the unlikeliest of places.<br />
“We went to a gig out in Geneva and we’d stopped<br />
off for a coffee,” remembers James. “The only other<br />
people in the cafe were a couple, and when the<br />
women got out her purse we saw it was one of ours.<br />
We were like little kids, it was so exciting!”<br />
James and Luke’s exuberance and excitement<br />
over their designs is catching - and it shows in the<br />
products themselves. Their signature style is playful,<br />
quirky and fun, combining elaborate hand-drawn<br />
designs appliqued onto quality leather.<br />
A firm favourite among customers, the Bookworm<br />
collection pays homage to literary classics with books<br />
lovingly hand-stitched onto the front of bags of all<br />
shapes, sizes, styles and colours.<br />
For something a little tastier, the Biscuit collection<br />
offers a delicious repertoire of bags, purses and<br />
keyrings in the shape of everyone’s favourite teatime<br />
treats. There are custard creams, bourbons, Nice<br />
biscuits, cookies, iced rings and even Jammy Dodgers<br />
- a collaboration with the official Jammy Dodger<br />
brand.<br />
The latest launch, which has just hit the Yoshi<br />
website, includes around 20 different collections<br />
featuring everything from adorable pooches to quaint<br />
cafe scenes, retro VHS stacks and plenty of cake.<br />
Alongside the applique bags is also a selection of<br />
plain leather offerings, including cool retro satchels<br />
and backpacks in vibrant colours.<br />
Launched in 2006, Yoshi may be a relatively new<br />
name in the handbag game, but it comes with the<br />
backing of more than 50 years of experience in<br />
product design, manufacture and - most importantly<br />
- the handcrafting of leather.<br />
Yoshi’s parent company Lichfield Leather was set up<br />
6
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