How was the Muntaner brand born, and what was your initial founding idea?
Muntaner was born from a long-standing personal project. I wanted to echo my roots and return to my childhood memories, as my parents were in the leather goods business. I wanted to create beauty and rediscover this material, leather, to have a range with exceptional and very original materials, while designing bags inspired by vintage bags with timeless shapes.
What distinguishes your creations from other leather goods brands?
As I mentioned, my materials are marine leathers that I combine with full-grain cowhide. It's an exceptional material, in terms of quality, feel, and the iridescent skin with beautiful colors. There's also a very thorough approach to all metallic parts. I worked in jewelry for a long time. I had my metallic parts, the hardware for my bags, designed by a jewelry designer, and I wanted these pieces to be truly distinctive with a strong identity and graphic design. You can see a bit of the Art Deco side, which is something that really inspires me.
Where does the name "MUNTANER" come from?
Muntaner was the name of the street where I lived with my parents. It was my family home, full of bags, full of leather. We had a room with special customer orders arriving for the boutique, there were my grandmother's old clutches. As a little girl, I discovered all these materials and beautiful objects, and so, I wanted to preserve that memory.
What importance do you place on handmade craftsmanship and artisans?
I place great importance on handmade craftsmanship and artisans; I work with a French luxury leather goods workshop. My bags are handmade near Tours by high-end leather artisans who truly work on the bags with great passion and love. This is evident in the finishes, in the way they work the material and the gesture—it's important. And yes, this passion must be present.
MUNTANER also offers custom-made items; can you tell us more?
My ambition was truly to offer my customers the possibility of custom-made items. So I schedule personalized appointments where customers can choose their colors, their materials. There is the possibility, in any case, to have models in another color or another material. I do this with my workshop, and it's something that customers really appreciate to have this service. Because choosing your own bag is an extraordinary personal gift you give yourself. Women put everything in their bag: their secrets, their appointments, their personal belongings. So, being able to choose it, to really imagine what it will be like, is something my customers greatly appreciate, and I absolutely wanted to offer this service.
How do you use marine leather in your creations?
This material is exceptional. It is as precious as reptile leathers but it is not controversial since it is 100% upcycled leather. It is vegetable-tanned, so it takes about two months to give it color. So they are scaled with a lot of iridescence, a lot of light, in the colors. It really gives an extraordinary brilliance to my range.
Find the brand on its e-shop : https://muntaner-paris.com/