The leather haberdashery from their range of products implies men’s and women’s bags, purses and wallets of different designs, belts, special-purpose bags, maps, menus, ornamental cases and protective gloves as their permanent commodities, as well as many made-to-order products.

“It is hard to attribute a strength character to our products because of the emphasised seasonality element. The hospitality equipment dominates in the summer, the business programme in the winter, and fashion creations of purses and belts periodically. The protective equipment is produced continually over the year for permanent customers,” Stjepan Nemčić says.
“Unfortunately, crafts in Sv. Ivan Zelina are in decline and their number has dropped by approximately one half in the past 15 years. In my opinion, interest in craft as occupation should be incited as early as in the secondary school,” Stjepan adds.

“The production process starts with the selection of quality leather suitable for production of products which it is intended for. In case of bags, for example, every piece is tailored manually of leather and lining that will be inserted in the end. The section where parts of the leather join is narrowed to make adhesion as better. In parallel, the bag is glued at places, and later it is sewed. Depending on the way of making, edges and handles are painted in the corresponding colour, dried and sewed or installed in their positions. When putting a bag together, attention should be paid to pockets in the inside of the bag or the section so that they are properly sewed. The lining is inserted in the form of the bag that has been produced,” he explains the complete process of production so that the customers will additionally value handicraft.

Photo: Robert Anic/PIXSELL

Materials that they use are supplied in Italy, the European capital of fashion leather. They also do series to order. “Certainly, for us, serial production does not imply an assembly line and automated operation but a selective personal approach to any bag in a small-scale collection. When work to order is in question, whether it is about cases for different products, bags, wallets, a draft is made for any item, a pattern is created and only then the production starts,” he says.

Their bags are available to anyone interested on their website and in Zagreb Crafts catalog.
Products that have left the production process and have found their buyer will surely be used for many years, and this is evidenced by products that are brought back for repair to the service shop even 10 years later. “If repair does occur, we look at it in terms of improvements for future products. The export orientation of the craft is small, but it exists! We would like to expand export to more European countries, and to further markets, through Zagreb Crafts,” Stjepan Nemčić emphasises.

Concerning their plans for the future, they note export expansion, opening of a business area, boosting the brand and investing in new machines and equipment to add speed to the current quality.