Spanish raw material sets Loewe apart, CEO claims
25/06/2013
In an interview with Madrid-based business daily Finanzas, Ms Montague said: “It’s very important for us to have products that are made in Spain. The value of our products comes from the leather from which they are made and our feeling is that we need to keep control over that.”
She explained that she considers the material available to the company, which makes its leathergoods in a factory in Getafe, near Madrid, to be of very high quality. Quoting one example, she highlighted napa leather from entrefino lambskins, from animals reared in the Pyrenees. “It’s strong, but soft, light and silky and highly valued,” Ms Montague told the newspaper. “On top of that, the know-how that has been preserved in Spain to work with this kind of material give great authenticity to our products and that’s what sets Spain apart from high-end producers in Italy or France.”
She explained that an expansion programme at the Loewe factory in Getafe is under way and that the company is in the process of training new leathergoods artisans there. Twelve people from an initial group of 20 have come through the first of a series of training courses. Those 12 people now have a six-month contract at Loewe and will be made permanent employees if the come through a probationary period successfully.
The chief executive said the company will continue with its training programme for the next three-to-five years, hoping to train around 300 people in leathergoods manufacture in the time, about 50% of whom she hopes will become Loewe employees.
Share this story:
