Tomas Maier

the label

The Italian leather goods house of Bottega Veneta was started in 1966. It's headquarters is in Milan, and they have a showroom in New York. Bottega Veneta is a manufacturer of consumer goods, producing mainly men's and women's ready-to-wear clothing, small leather goods, and home items. They are reputed for quality and exclusiveness. Bottega Veneta is known for its signature Intrecciato Line.

The company has been a family concern, run by the Moltedo family and Laura Moltedo was Bottega's creative director and president for many years.

Their trademark handbag was made of woven leather strips and it is still one of their highest selling bags. They have updated it with soft suede and plenty of fringing. BV uses highest quality materials, unique craftwork and innovative design.

In 1998 they made an addition to their leather accessories lines, they moved into womens ready-to-wear garments. These have been very successful.

Gucci acquired the company in 2001 and Tom Ford is personally getting the company moving faster.

In 2002 German-born Tomas Maier was appointed creative director. He was born in1957 and spent nine years at Hermes and Iceberg before starting his own swimwear line in 1998. Maier has lots of ideas for beautiful new leather accessories for Bottega Veneta and for their womenswear lines.

the designers

German-born Tomas Maier took the helm in 2001 and revived the flagging brand by injecting a more modern feel and reworking the traditional woven leather signature.