**DUBAI — **Chalhoub Group, the luxury retail group that has distributed more than 400 international labels across the Middle East for seven decades, is venturing into brand building with Makette, a modular handbag and leather goods line launching this month.

The debut marks a strategic pivot for the family-owned company, expanding beyond its traditional franchise model to create proprietary brands with global ambitions.

Ana Canadas, Chalhoub Group’s director of fashion innovation, pointed to an industry trend: luxury handbag prices have surged 60 to 90 percent since 2019, driven by rising raw material costs and supply chain pressures. Meanwhile, some luxury houses shifted production to lower-cost locations, she claimed, compromising quality even as prices climbed.

“People say the bags their mothers had lasted generations, but ones purchased now break after a couple of years,” Canadas claimed during an interview here. This, she explained, presented an opportunity to create a product that was high-quality and high-functioning.

Architecture Meets Functionality

Study 01, Makette’s inaugural collection, presents three foundational styles: The Curve, The Patina and The Strata. Each is designed around what Canadas called “systems thinking,” rather than traditional modularity.

“It’s creating a system that you can add things to and that works across multiple times of day and activities.”


The Patina

The large Patina serves as a work tote that fits laptops and daily essentials. The medium Curve transitions from day to night with adjustable straps and detachable chains that can be worn as jewelry. The Strata takes a different approach entirely, comprising multiple pouches in varying sizes that can be worn individually as clutches or combined using chains and straps from other pieces in the collection.

“You can wear just one of them for coffee, or you can play around with combinations,” Canadas said. The design also accommodates tech accessories, with vertical pouch configurations suitable for tablets. A special neckpiece launching with the small leather goods collection will connect multiple Strata pouches, allowing wearers to create their own configurations without needing a traditional handbag base.

“The big one is your go-to work bag. Carry everything, your kids’ stuff, the diaper bag if you need to,” Canadas said. “You get to work and bring the medium one out for meetings or lunch. It’s about thinking through what you need during your day.”


The Strata can be worn linked together as three pouches or separately

Prices range from $1,050 to $1,400 for handbags, with small leather goods launching in January at lower price points. The initial run comprises 13 stock keeping units across three styles in four to five colorways, focusing on neutral tones with textural variations, including embossed crocodile.

“More than 60 to 70 percent of bags sold worldwide are black,” Canadas noted, explaining the emphasis on foundational colors with selective trend-driven accents like the current burgundy moment.

From Spain to the World

Every piece is handcrafted in Ubrique, Andalusia, renowned for centuries-old leather craftsmanship. Materials are Leather Working Group certified, and each bag contains an NFC-enabled Digital Passport that tracks origin, care instructions, and authenticity. Customers can tap their phones to the bag’s logo to access brand videos, authentication verification, care instructions, and personalized questionnaires.

“It creates personalized experiences and helps us understand what customers want next,” Canadas said. “It’s super important for traceability and authenticity. The biggest problem with handbags is the amount of fakes.”

The brand will retail primarily direct-to-consumer through makette.com, with distribution handled from Spain rather than the Middle East. “We’re launching as a global brand,” Canadas said. “The handbags are made in Europe, so we distribute from Spain.”

She’s selective about wholesale partnerships. “The commission for brands is high and has become higher over time. On top of that, you pay marketing fees, you don’t control pricing,” she said. “The frenzy of discounting really dilutes your brand equity. It works for some, but it can be very difficult for new brands.”

Instead, she’s in discussions with curated boutiques, including Dubai’s Level Shoes, which is owned and operated by Chalhoub Group.

Start-up Within a Corporation

Canadas spent the first half of 2025 building Makette from concept to launch, analyzing competitors, selecting production locations, and developing the brand positioning. She presented five concepts to Chalhoub’s board, four in ready-to-wear, one in accessories, with leather goods ultimately selected as the strategic priority.

Operating as a start-up within a major corporation presents unique challenges. “There’s an expectation of profitability that’s probably higher and in a shorter period of time because they operate franchise businesses,” Canadas acknowledged with a smile. “But you need to give brands time to develop.”

The investment focus when developing the brand had a long term emphasis. “The greatest investment is in supply chain: the cost of materials and labor,” she said.


The Patina bag is part of Makette’s first drop.

The brand’s “less, but better” philosophy extends to packaging, designed for reuse or recycling, and a limited-edition drop will launch next year made entirely from production offcuts.

Canadas said sticking to leather over plant-based materials was important to maintain quality. “There’s a lot of alternatives on the market, but none have great longevity. I’ve had substitutes that lasted two or three seasons, especially in hot, humid climates where they disintegrate faster. If you’re working with Leather Working Group certified materials from the meat industry byproduct, it’s more sustainable than creating something you’ll replace in two years.”

Small leather goods are next for Makette, with plans to roll out five styles in January offering what Canada said is “10 new ways to use the items.” That will be followed by Study 02 next year featuring different hardware using stainless steel with 18-karat gold plating sourced from China, where Canadas contended hardware technology surpasses European alternatives.

“With the hardware, hands down, China has the best technology,” she said, noting that perception doesn’t match reality. “China has developed so much. You have such high-quality manufacturing materials across the board.”

The brand name, Makette, a play on the French term for architectural prototype, signals the iterative approach. “Everything’s always in development. What we’re doing right now is a study for the next. As we get feedback from customers, we start looking at changes for Study 02.”

Launching a brand during the fourth quarter presents timing challenges, Canadas acknowledged, as some competitors can discount heavily through Black Friday and Cyber Monday. “Everyone’s discounted, and we are not. That doesn’t work from a margin perspective, and it’s not the ethos of the brand,” she said.

Makette represents the first step in Chalhoub Group’s brand-building strategy, with Canadas tasked with developing multiple concepts over time. “The idea is to start multiple brands under the umbrella, but obviously at the right time with the right cadence,” she said. “The group has always been very focused on distribution and operations. This is the next chapter, adding creation on top of it.”