About // Our Background
Catherine Manuell Design - The Art of Going Places!
Name: Catherine Manuell
Company: Catherine Manuell Design (CMD).
Industry: Designing colourful luggage, handbags, executive range, scarves and other accessories.
Role: Catherine Manuell - Director and designer.
Contact: info@catherinemanuelldesign.com +61 (0) 3 9499 9844
Catherine Manuell Design is a twelve-year-old company.
CMD now employs more than 15 staff, and has more than 100 different designs in its range each season.
Background: Originally training and working as a teacher, after traveling overseas Manuell returned to Australia and started designing hats 20 years ago. After embarking on another overseas trip, she returned and worked as a freelance designer for labels such as Metalicus, Stussy Sista and Kookai before launching her own CMD brand twelve years ago.
Black spells 'classic' in a lot of instances. There are cars that look better in black than in any other colour (okay, perhaps we'll give you an occasional red), bank account balances, and be honest; a penguin suit really has no business being anything else.
But luggage? Well, it can make for a confusing time at the carousel - which is exactly what Catherine Manuell thought eleven years ago.
"I've always loved colour, so when I came to buy luggage, I never wanted a black bag, but I realized that was basically all that was available," says Manuell. "I thought it was pretty dull and I was suprised that there was no more choice available, and so I decided to create something completely different for myself and others!”
And plain black is a far cry from the range that Catherine Manuell Design (CMD) now sports. Forget plain black, think faux moss croc, french peasant prints or cranberry alligator, floral haby's, swirl black flat fur, oversized roses, and Aboriginal artist painting prints - the list of options is long.
"I never wanted to produce something that was so different it wouldn't appeal, so I like to use clean, simple lines designs, and always make sure that the bags are very practical and functional. But I love to use colour and texture to give them a point of difference."
Starting off in what Manuell describes as a "very small" way, working out of her Melbourne home designing a limited range of handbags and hats and other accessories, these days CMD has evolved into a much bigger creation. Manuell not only designs and manufactures more than 100 different products each season, she exports them, can name more than 100 stockists in Australasia, 50 more worldwide, and has three Melbourne-based retail stores,
"I never really thought it would grow into something quite so large," says Manuell. "I always thought, as long as I was enjoying it and it was working well, then I'd stay with it."
In truth, this isn't the first business venture Manuell has turned into a success story. Twenty years ago, she decided she wanted to design hats. So she did. "I managed to sell them into a favourite shop, and by the time I'd returned from making the delivery they'd already sold a couple, and so they repeated their order."
It was a similar story when she turned her hand to luggage and handbags, but Manuell can remember the defining moment when she knew that her enjoyment of accessory design could be something more.
"There have been a few turning points in the business - getting my first order was pretty big! But I think I made the decision to pursue it seriously almost eleven years ago. I'd just given birth to my daughter and I knew that if I was going to keep the business going, I'd have to employ someone to help me. I'd need to have enough work to employ that person, so it was no longer just about me. When I realized that the business was able to do that, that was pretty satisfying."
Apart from her canny knack for predicting and coming up with great designs, that growth can also be put down to Manuell's ability to being involved in some valuable media opportunities, ones that have seen CMD product line up for appearances on television shows like Neighbours, Big Brother , Secret Life of Us , Kath and Kym The Circuit, Canal Road, Inside Business, Australian Next top Model, Postcards and more.. And then there's the fact that celebrities like Sandra Bullock and Daniel Ratcliffe Megan Gale and Kate Hudson love a good CMD piece of luggage.
"Things like that are exciting," says Manuell. "It all adds up, it's all part of building a growing awareness for the brand, and it's fun to be involved in. I was in London a while ago, and a woman walked past looking very much the 'inner city London/Soho part' carry a CMD trolley and that was exciting. I didn't know it was going to be there, so that sort of thing is always exciting. It's the fun part."
And while luggage and bags make up Manuell's core business, some hats are still there, along with accessories like cushions, wallets, shopping trolleys, scarves, laptop cases and corporate folios.
"I get my inspiration from all over the place," says Manuell. "I always try to carry a notebook with me so if I see someone standing at a bus stop or in a café that has a great look, or has done something unique, I can jot it down. I always seem to be writing things down on napkins as well.
"But I also just design pieces that I think I, or people I know, would like to use. And I get to travel a lot, which is great for getting inspiration from other countries, and also learning what accessories people actually need when they travel"
And what sort of luggage does she take with her for the ride? Safe bet it's straight out of her own range. It seems that when it comes to bags Catherine Manuell's designs are definitely the new black!
*For further information or for any assistance we will be happy to help, so please contact us at: info@catherinemanuelldesign.com or on +61 (0)3 9499 9844. Thank you!