Starting Out: The Story Behind Troubadour Goods

Troubadour co-founders Samuel Bail and Abel Samet explore the genesis of their business.

The path to Troubadour was years in the making. Our former careers in finance found us travelling quite a bit for work. At the same time we were also regularly heading out of town on weekend excursions with friends. We quickly came to realize how important a great overnight bag is to this lifestyle – something we’d never really given much thought to before.

While neither of us would consider ourselves overly fashionable, we do have an appreciation for well-made products and good design. We searched high and low for an overnight bag that could transition seamlessly between weekdays and weekends, and we were continuously disappointed. Many of the leather bags we found were too flashy or all logo’d out and not appropriate for work. The others were so formal they looked out of place on the weekend. Without consciously knowing it, we had started on the journey that would eventually lead us to Troubadour.

In time, we started playing around with the idea of designing and creating the bags we envisioned. Then we explored a little deeper and started meeting various individuals involved in the creation of high-end leather bags. We were energized by the passion and enthusiasm they bring to their work. The adventure had taken hold, and the most exciting piece of the process became this search for incredible craftspeople.

We spent the first year and a half of Troubadour’s official life working on our materials and design. Lucky for us, that meant travelling across Europe to world-renowned leather tanneries, bag manufacturers, product trade shows and so much more. We allowed ourselves as much time as we needed to secure the best partners and develop our inaugural line. We plan to take that same thoughtful approach to everything we do as a business, just like the artisans who make our products have done for generations.

We fully appreciate the Troubadour adventure is as much a search for people as it is for product. The only way we will be able to maintain our promise to create goods of the highest quality will be through finding and partnering with the best craftspeople.

Though Troubadour may yet be a young company, it’s built upon hundreds of years of history. The people, many from family-run businesses, who design and make our goods, boast generations of experience in product development. We will forever remain committed to creating incredible products that wear beautifully and last a lifetime.

Oh, and what’s in a name? In case you’re wondering, the name Troubadour comes from the travelling storytellers of days gone by. It is inspired by the incredible artisans we’ve met throughout this process, and our hope to share their stories with you.

Thank you for visiting our online home, it’s nice to have you here.

Warmly,
Samuel and Abel