Hirra Babar, a Lahore-born designer, has had a line of handbags show in the Milan and Paris fashion shows for the previous few years.
“A modern fashion brand striving to twist the fabric of fashion by developing high quality, abstract forms, and minimalist everyday fashion items,” Warp characterises itself.
A collection of ‘Hexella’ handbags with a distinctively contemporary style is the signature product: “Hexella is a combination of the terms Hex and Bella, which refers to a six-sided beauty. Our unique minibag was the inspiration for the name.
The Hexella Minibag was an attempt to explore the idea of bold, definitive, and geometric forms in fashion accessories, which led to the definition of the brand’s entire new look.”
The designer outlines the process and effort of creating a contemporary line of handbags that relies exclusively on a Pakistan-based production process to journalist Sonya Rehman For Forbes.
“Pakistan is one of the largest leather exporters in the world and it’s sad that we don’t have a single commercial brand that’s selling high value goods overseas,” Babar was quoted as having said. This involved training her team of craftsmen in Pakistan to not only match but exceed international standards, after the startup began in 2016.
The craftsmanship is described as follows:
“Our collections are designed and made with special attention and systematic processes and focuses on reinventing leather stitching techniques while only using finest materials such as top grain goat skin leather and plated accessories. Part of Warp’s mission it to enhance and promote high-end leather accessories manufacturing in Pakistan. The bags are handcrafted in finest quality materials in Lahore, the cultural capital of Pakistan.”
Babar and her team’s efforts paid off, as the line of handbags began to gain traction at the world’s most important fashion and accessory events. Warp was also selected by the National Chamber of Italian Fashion to display its pieces at Mipel in the emerging brands category, according to Forbes.
“From being a part of Mipel (a prestigious leather handbag and accessories event) in Milan in 2018, to presenting at Trano (a leading trade show) at three seasons of Paris Fashion Week in both 2019 and 2020, Warp was also selected by the National Chamber of Italian Fashion to display its pieces at Mipel in the emerging brands category,” according to Forbes.
Handbag from Lahore That made it to Paris…….. https://t.co/n2izavU3jP pic.twitter.com/vveB1RmL2g
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) February 1, 2022
