The wait has been long, but worth it. Mumbai is now home to homegrown leather goods brand Nappa Dori’s largest store. Opening a shop in Maximum City was always on founder Gautam Sinha’s mind. But finding the right place took nearly two years.
“We locked in Colaba after exploring options in Kala Ghoda. It was important to find a place that would showcase our entire range of products and we didn’t want to compromise on that. We wanted to come to Mumbai as a serious brand and establish ourselves as a landmark store,” says Sinha.
The 36-year-old design graduate is delighted with the store’s location, right next to the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. “We love the feel of people stumbling upon the brand and enjoying the space as well as the brand. Mumbai is our largest store in the country,” he says.
Nappa Dori’s journey started with a small store in Delhi’s Hauz Khas village six years ago, and has been “an incredible one” in Sinha’s words. “The best things in life emerge from pure passion, and not a strategic business plan. I feel blessed to be in a position to say that we have established Nappa Dori as a brand. But the biggest contributing factor for this has been the new sense of pride in the country to use homegrown products.”
Sinha sees a significant shift in the leather goods market. “From being in the hands of big players or family-run businesses to smaller players trying to make a mark in the segment, the market has evolved. Nappa Dori was the first Indian brand to establish itself as a brand without being from the industry, and being purely design-centric. When we opened our first store in Hauz Khaz Village, there were no independent leather goods brands.”
His celebrity client roster is impressive. Mira Nair, Sonam Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez, Nimrat Kaur, Naomi Watts and Eva Longoria use and love Nappa Dori. And Sinha feels that it’s an indication that he’s doing something right.
“Most of them genuinely care about supporting homegrown brands and respect good design and craftsmanship,” he says.
Nostalgia prints are Nappa Dori’s hallmark. From trams and rickshaws to railway stations, colonial India is etched on its product range.
“It’s important to be inspired by something in your life, whether it’s the past or the future. I have an innate love for vintage, be it bags or buildings. We wanted to have that sense of personal connect with our customers. Hence the quintessential Indian images worked well for us. It instantly gave our clients the sense of belonging and nostalgia. It’s an Indian brand, after all. The brief to my design team is to create something that can be handed down generations.”
When we ask him if, in a decade’s time, Nappa Dori will be India’s answer to iconic British luxury brand Mulberry, Sinha says the brand is constantly evolving and he’s still doing the one thing he truly loves: designing products that make people happy. “We always wanted to be true to who we are. I think Nappa Dori will enter the league of the most revered Indian luxury brands. That’s the journey I would like to take.”
Does the occasional chatter on the steep price point of the brand bother him?
“Constructive criticism is good. But quality handcrafted products have a value attached to them. The chatter has not really made me think differently on how I would like to carry on. That means that we are on the right path,” he says.
Nappa Dori 2, Sunny House, Mereweather Road, Colaba; 22042162
