TSATSAS Atelier

We discovered Offenbach am Main-based TSATSAS when they collaborated with our friend Ramon Haindl for Aesthetic Habitat in 2014. This month, the label for fine leather bags and accessories which was founded in 2012 will be opening its very first own store in Frankfurt. Boasting 100 m² of floor space the German brand will bring together its sales area, showroom, model workshop and office facilities in a single location, which was concepted and designed by TSATSAS founders and owners Esther Schulze-Tsatsas and Dimitrios Tsatsas. For their new outlet they completely gutted the building’s ground floor (the frontage is on Frankenallee) and designed interventions that carefully visually structure the space in different functional zones. When in Frankfurt make sure to visit this gem.

The basic philosophy behind the new space was not to place the rooms in competition with the products showcased in them, but to lend each individual zone its very own, unmistakable design feel.

An impressive five-meter floor-to-ceiling shelf unit showcases the collection of bags and accessories as the Tsatsas Atelier’s central element. Dimitrios Tsatsas imported the marble for the industrial shelf elements from his native country of Greece. The Greek marble now sets the stage for the presentation of various bag styles, including LUCID, which is made of calf leather from southern Germany, and FLUKE, made of shrunken lamb nappa leather from New Zealand.

The studio where the TSATSAS Collection is produced is located in nearby Offenbach. Here the leather goods are made by hand with over 30 years of expertise and tradition in leathercraft. The designs and prototypes however are exclusively developed in the TSATSAS Atelier. To this end, a workshop has been incorporated into the existing space, creating an independent room within a room by virtue of mounting matt lacquered, mitre joint plywood panels.

The workspaces of the TSATSAS sales and PR teams are concealed behind a floor-to-ceiling wall panel with an integrated section of tinted glass. The back office is likewise accommodated here. Countless design icons have been given pride of place in the TSATSAS Atelier, including objects by Konstantin Grcic, Michael Anastassiades, Paolo Rizzatto or Le Corbusier, and by manufacturers such as Classicon, Nya Nordiska, Flos, Magis, Mattiazzi, Cassina and Plank.

TSATSAS was established by Esther Schulze-Tsatsas and Dimitrios Tsatsas in 2012. Working with leather is a long-standing family tradition. Dimitrios Tsatsas’ father has been running an atelier producing fine leather goods in Offenbach am Main for more than 30 years. Although very much influenced by this traditional way of working, Dimitrios Tsatsas soon came to find the repertoire in classical craftwork too limited. He studied Industrial Design and subsequently worked as a creative director in the field of design for ten years. Esther Schulze-Tsatsas studied Architecture and, for a long time, was responsible for producing and implementing the concepts for major design events. Over 20 fashion stores worldwide stock TSATSAS products, including such prestigious partners as Andreas Murkudis (Berlin), Tom Greyhound (Paris), Tomorrowland (Tokyo) and Boontheshop (Seoul).

Photography by Gerhardt Kellerman.

For more information see here