LAMA leather goods was born from a passion for creating sustainable, long lasting and beautiful objects, in the heart of Berlin.
Our goal is to reinvent traditional craftsmanship with sharp design, smart construction, curiosity, and above all, integrity.
I believe in honest materials, and in creating products that are both beautiful and functional, that’s why all of products are handmade to last from top quality materials, like Italian vegetable-tanned leather & solid brass.
LAMA is not me, and I’m not her, but we’re inextricably linked. I cannot tell one’s story without the other. I’m Dani, a proud neuroqueer afro-latina, a 90’s kid from downtown Santiago, Chile.
LAMA’s ‘founding’ in 2015 was less a conscious decision and more a slow, organic evolution. It began with scraps of leather and a part-time job in a shoe shop, where my first creations took shape.
Like for many creators, what started out as a hobby, quickly took over my life, so I gave it a name. ‘La Marroquinería’ – Spanish for leatherwork – felt right at the time, but it was too long, too general, and hard to pronounce in other countries. Minimalism, always a guiding principle, led me to distill it down to its essence: and LAMA was born.
In 2016, I was 23, four years into an engineering degree at an elitist, conservative university – a place I could join mainly thanks to a scholarship and my parents’ unwavering support. As an anti-capitalist, socialist, feminist, queer Black woman from a humble family, I was, shall we say, a square peg in a round hole.
Growing up in Chile, or anywhere in the Global South, your worth is often measured by your ability to pay for university and become a doctor, engineer, or lawyer. But degrees never held much appeal for me; freedom was my driving force.
As an only child, I was expected to be the first to graduate, to ‘make something of myself.’ So, when I decided to leave school and move away, my parents were less than thrilled. France became my first stop on this life quest with LAMA.
Since then, I’ve lived many lives, worked various jobs, and called several places home across multiple countries. LAMA’s journey has been just as nomadic, with at least seven different workspaces in the last decade – including a corner of a shared living room in Santiago, a tiny desk in a treehouse in Normandy (yes, really!), and my small bedroom in Paris.
Join me in this ride as an independent artist, entrepreneur, and migrant woman in our current life in Kreuzberg -Berlin, our home since 2020. Thanks for being here ❤︎
Creating long-lasting, thoughtfully designed leather goods that embody timeless aesthetics, sustainable practices, and accessible quality, LAMA is driven by a commitment to radical transparency, ethical production, and fair pricing, prioritising quality and artistic integrity over fleeting trends and mass production.
The foundation of exceptional handcrafted leather goods lies in the quality of the materials we select. We’re committed to using premium materials that not only enhance the beauty and durability of our creations but also reflect our dedication to sustainable practices. We believe that investing in quality materials is an investment in creating products that will be cherished for generations to come.
Our primary material is highest quality grade vegetable-tanned leather, from Tuscany, Italy.
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