Ellington Leather is an Oregon-based lifestyle bag company that produces totes, handbags, briefcases, backpacks, wallets and other leather and fabric bags and accessories. The company’s products are geared towards consumers seeking classic bags with timeless appeal at a mid-tier price point. Unicorn acquired 90% of Ellington Leather in May 2006 and aims to leverage the company’s outstanding platform and attractive positioning to further grow the company.
Successful overseas sourcing has allowed Ellington Leather to produce very high quality bags at relatively low prices. The company’s design process takes place at the Ellington Leather studio in Portland, and the design team work closely with tanneries in Italy and factories in China to produce bags that are well made and reasonably priced.
Ellington Leather operates from two locations, both in Portland: a 5,000 square feet leased design studio and retail outlet, and a 12,000 square feet warehouse located a few blocks away. The company displays its current product lines at various trade shows throughout the year and directly to some of its larger customers. Ellington Leather maintains a small internal sales force but also utilizes external sales representatives to support the company’s dealer distribution channel.
Ellington Leather is led by an experienced management team headed by CEO Martin Berendsen who has an impressive background in consumer products and brand management. Prior to joining Ellington Leather, he was the President of VF Corporation’s Action Sports division where he was responsible for the Vans, Reef and Eastpak brands. He is supported by the founders of Ellington Leather, Alecia Elsasser who heads the design team and Ed Elsasser who is the head of sales. The Elsassers have worked together since the founding of Ellington Leather in 1986 and have grown the company from a small family operation to a sizable platform that is positioned for significant growth. They retain a 10% stake in the company.
