“I don’t think I chose an easy path, but I just don’t give up until I reach whatever goal I have,” says Mireia Lluisa-Lindh, the founder of the handbag brand DeMellier. She isn’t kidding. During our conversation, between the bouts of bad wifi and frozen screen pauses, her drive and determination still comes across loud and clear as she recounts how her goal was to build a company with a calling. One far broader than just selling another elegant handbag. After all, the world already has plenty of those.
There are many fronts on which DeMellier differentiates itself from other quiet luxury accessory brands on the market. The practical and posed bags are conceived by an all-female design team, they are crafted ethically and sustainably in Europe, and each bag sold translates into lives being saved (more on that later).
Mireia Llusia-Lindh, Founder of DeMellier
“I felt very strongly when I started that I wanted the brand to reflect my values. Doing things properly and ethically, sustainably, and empowering women. And then, giving back to those who need it most,” the Barcelona-born founder shares. Using her life savings, Llusia-Lindh launched her brand in London in 2017 as a one-woman operation. She was committed to threading the luxury needle and positioned DeMellier between traditional top-tier designer brands and the more mass market offerings. Since then, the founder has expertly carved out a space for her company that combines refined design with a more attainable price point (think Dhs1,300 to Dhs3,000 for a bag). She first identified this gap in the market during her years in management consulting and at Harvard Business School. And now, with a team of 60 in London and another 250 artisans working in the brand’s factory, it’s clear that Llusia-Lindh has found a designer sweet spot.
“I felt very strongly when I started that I wanted the brand to reflect my values. Doing things properly and ethically, sustainably, and empowering women. And then, giving back to those who need it most.”
From day one, giving back has also been an integral part of the brand’s DNA, making philanthropy a brand pillar rather than an afterthought. Through the permanent initiative “A Bag, A Life”, each purchase of a DeMellier funds life-saving vaccines. “From the beginning, we partnered with a charity called SOS Children’s Villages, which is the largest orphan charity in the world, and they support mainly orphan or unaccompanied children,” shares Llusia-Lindh. “We fund vaccines and medical treatments for children in need, because in some of those countries, one out of six deaths in children are from preventable causes, which is truly heartbreaking. As a mother of three, I cannot comprehend that,” she adds.
With such a strong female founder, it’s no wonder that DeMellier’s A/W 2025 collection is an ode to individuality and empowerment. Photographed in 1970s office interiors in Canary Wharf’s financial district, the campaign features a businesswoman who has built a career in a space historically dominated by men. Structured and sculptural, the bags are designed as modern armour, as emblems of resilience and identity, and reflections of responsibility. As Llusia-Lindh explains, “We don’t have to compromise with femininity, we don’t need to compromise our values to be at the top of our industries. This was kind of a visual representation of that. So hopefully you felt that when you saw the images.”
The narrative of the campaign, women navigating leadership, ambition, and authenticity, resonates particularly in the Middle East, where DeMellier has found one of its fastest-growing markets, where larger silhouette bags, such as the Hudson and New York styles, are the best sellers. “When they are wearing our bags, we want women to feel strong and empowered and good about themselves – it’s more than just carrying a bag. Hopefully, you know you’re carrying the bags we believe in and that the women share this with us.” Looking ahead, DeMellier is committed to deepening its presence in the Middle East through partnerships and closer engagement with clients. The region’s appreciation for craftsmanship, coupled with its alignment with values of resilience and responsibility, makes it a natural home for the brand. “We see so much potential. So we are super excited, actually, about the Middle East. We have some great wholesale partners already in the Middle East.” The brand’s success has allowed Llusia-Lindh to now focus her energy more on the artistic direction of the company. It is a natural evolution, combining her business background with the influence of her mother, an artist. “My father was in business, and my mother was very creative,” recounts the founder, who admits she feels at ease managing both the business side and the creative components of her company. “It’s just that as you grow more and more, you don’t have the time for ev- erything. So I will continue to guide the business side, but less of the day-to-day, basically. And then, focus on the creative – the vision of the brand, aesthetics, photo shoots, and how the store should look, which I’m still very much involved in.”
Strength, as the latest DeMellier collection reminds us, is multifaceted. It is expressed in the curve of a sculptural handle, in the choice of sustainable materials, in the permanence of a philanthropic initiative, and in the steady vision of a founder who built a brand from the ground up. What sustains her? The grit, resilience, and support of her family, especially her daughters. “I have three daughters, and that’s probably the greatest source of strength that both my husband and I have.”
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: emirateswoman.com
