Loewe’s History

[purselove4444]

I just found this out and thought it was pretty cool!

I know lots of people are fans of Loewe on this forum (and with good reason, the bags are beautiful). But - did you know... That Lodis is essentially Loewe created for the US market?

"When Lodis was established more than 40 years ago by European designers Loewe of Spain and Dan Segat, its original collection was specifically created for the U.S. market using Loewe's time honored skills, leather, and craftsmanship."

"The name, LODIS, was created from this initial union, combining “LO” from Loewe with Dan Segat’s initials – DIS – to create LODIS."

 

[leechiyong]

I didn't know this; very interesting. Thank you for sharing!

 

[purselove4444]

I didn't know this; very interesting. Thank you for sharing!

No problem, glad you enjoyed

 

[doni]

Perhaps not everyone knows that Loewe is one of the oldest European heritage mateliers, counting its roots back to 1846 and having been continuously in existence since then.
So I thought it could be a nice idea to have a thread to celebrate the 175+ years of Loewe’s history. Perhaps @Vlad can put it in Sticky for future reference.

Now, the first thing one notices about Loewe is that for a Spanish brand it doesn’t have a very Spanish sounding name... That is because the founder, Enrique Loewe Rössberg, was German. He came to Spain because of the leather craftmanship tradition and became the partner in a matelier that had been active in Madrid since 1846. There he started attracting a new wealthy clientele by combining his modern designs with the quality of the craftmanship. Here he is:



In 1882 he separates from his partner and opens his own shop and atelier in the Calle Principe in Madrid under the name E. Loewe. By the turn of the century, Loewe has become a household name in Spain, counting Queen Victoria Eugenia and King Alfonso XIII as clients. In 1905 Loewe gets the “by royal appointment” warrant and the todo Madrid wants a piece of the brand. They start expanding, opening more shops in the capital and in Barcelona.





This ad reads: Today like in 1844, a handbag from Loewe is original and elegant

 

[doni]

The Loewe logo is very distinctive, but relatively recent.

For years, the brand did not have a fixed logo or lettering. Here a collection of some of the ones that can be found in vintage pieces.



The famous Loewe logo with the four “Ls” was designed in 1970 by Spanish artist Vicente Vela, a personal friend of Enrique Loewe, the then brand owner. One story says he was inspired by irons to brand cattle or leather. Another says that he saw the light when looking at the shadow of the Loewe “L” in sheer fabric. Be it as it may, the anagram with the four mirroring “Ls” has become inseparable with the brand and iconic as an example of logo design.
For the name “LOEWE”, Vela picked up a version of the Bembo font, variations of which have been used until very recently.






Vicente Vela not only created the Loewe logo, but during 40 years collaborated towards the whole corporate image of the brand and also contributed designs for scarves and fabrics. He was not a graphic designer, but an artist in the most traditional sense, and Enrique Loewe referred to him as the “aesthetic soul of the brand”. He was fundamental to the very strong look that became associated to Loewe in those decades.
Here one of his scarves:



The Loewe logo evolved very little until Jonathan Anderson became creative director in 2013. He undertook the change and modernization of the logo while fully respecting its essence.

The ”new” Loewe logo was reworked by graphic studio M/M Paris. The new typography for the Loewe name is based on the Pegasus font by Berthold Wolpe, a well known German 1930s typologist. For the anagram, the designers looked at cattle branding irons to design a logo that could hypothetically be casted in metal. The new anagram is a faithful but streamlined adaptation of Vela’s original.

 

[doni]

Yesterday, August 22, Enrique Loewe Linch has celebrated his 80th birthday. He was the last of the Loewe dinasty to be at the helm of the firm and has remained involved to this day through the Fundación Loewe.




Enrique Loewe Linch is the son of Enrique Loewe Knapp who lived to be 103. His mother, Olivia Lynch, was Irish. His father and his uncle, Germán, had headed Loewe on behalf of the family since the war, one being in charge of Madrid, the other of Barcelona. By the 60s however, the relationship between the two brothers was strained. Enrique was a visionary and wanted to modernize the firm in line with the times whereas German was happy with his Catalan bourgeoise clientele and saw no reason for innovating. Eventually they agreed on having Enrique’s son take charge of the firm.

Here the two Enriques:


Enrique Loewe Linch basically built the Loewe brand we know today. He brought in artists and designers, among whom Vicente Vela who designed the famous logo. He supervised over the launch of the iconic Amazona line. He opened a store in London. Nevertheless, in a recent interview he said:

“In my 50 years at the helm of Loewe, we were never aware that we were doing luxury. Our aspiration was simply to do things well and be consistent with our artisanal soul. This was only later labeled luxury”




The rift between the two brothers persisted and eventually Germán Loewe sold his share of the company. After a difficult period, the firm was bought by LV in 1996. Since then, no member of the Loewe family has shares in the business.

Enrique Loewe Linch however remained involved as Honorary President and in charge of the Fundacion Loewe, a foundation promoting the arts which is today headed by his daughter Sheila Loewe.