Magic? It’s in the bag... (From Bournemouth Echo)

Magic? It’s in the bag...

7:07pm Friday 10th April 2009 in Search By Maria Court

LITTLE did Jade Newman know that a saying from a children’s TV series could be the beginning of a blossoming business.

Les Sacs Magique is the name she has given her new handbag company, borrowing a phrase commonly heard on Tots TV, when the toy characters were referring to a magic bag.

Jade, who lives in Southbourne, left Bournemouth’s Arts Institute in 2007 after graduating in costume for stage and screen.

With her sights set on New York University to continue her studies, she started making bags to fund the course.

In no time the public had taken her original designs to their hearts. She only started selling in the middle of February and in little over a month 60 bags had been snapped up by customers around the world.

The 24-year-old puts her success partly down to her modest prices and partly to the fact that she will only make a bag in any particular fabric once.

“In that way I can guarantee everything is a one-off. You won’t walk down the street and see someone else with the same bag,” she explained.

As well as custom orders, Jade currently has 12 different designs which can be made in the customer’s choice of fabric.

Upholstery fabrics and oilskins are her preferred materials, as are tweeds, which she predicts will be big this season.

The business also takes full advantage of the current vintage and recycling trends.

“When a favourite skirt of mine started to wear out, I couldn’t bear to part with it so I used the material to make a bag and now can enjoy the fabric for a little longer.”

Jade’s inspiration comes from individual fabrics and she is aiming to introduce a different design each week to her collection.

“I have named each one alphabetically with a girl’s name such as Josephine, Betty and Esther,” she said. “It gives the bags a personality and makes them easily identifiable.”

Before she launched Les Sacs Magique, Jade was a costume designer and one of her roles was wardrobe mistress for the Southampton panto starring Christopher Biggins.

“But my passion lies with handbags,” she said.

“I call them arm candy. They can transform a relatively generic outfit, which is great in this economic climate.

“I do work ridiculous hours though. I am at my machine as soon as I get up at 8am and work late into the night.”

Her dedication has paid off, however, with online orders coming in from all over the world.

On a recent trip to the artisan Greenwich Market she sold practically all the stock she took with her, and she has attracted a big following on Facebook.

But it isn’t just the ladies who want to get their hands on Jade’s handiwork.

“I also get a lot of blokes who turn to me when they are stuck for present ideas for their mums or girlfriends.”

• For more information about Jade and her work, visit the website les-sacs-magique.com.