Meet Kathi Ilker | Leather Artisan

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kathi Ilker and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kathi, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I somehow always knew that I wanted to have my own business, but the actual path to starting my artisanal leather atelier wasn’t a straight line. To answer this question, I have to go a little deeper into my backstory for you to be able to connect the combination of events, timing and interests, that led me here.

My professional career started out in the fashion industry. Growing up I have always been fascinated by the glamorous world of fashion, browsing through catalogues for hours, or cutting out magazine campaigns to create my own moodboards. Guided by that fascination, I completed a 4 year long Technical Clothing Degree and a 1 year long Pattern Making Education in Hamburg, Germany. After my professional studies, I gained work experience in the field of clothing production, product development and fashion retail.

On the side I was always working on my own creative projects and so I also happened to curiously explore my grandpa’s old craft studio. A true artist himself, Paul Böhm sadly passed away in 2009, entrusting our family with his 30 year old studio. More and more my weekend leather craft hobby turned into a real passion, which led me to taking a professional saddlery course in Portugal and ultimately relocating my grandpas old studio into my parent’s home, so I could work on it more frequently.

After I decided against extending my full-time employment contract, I was left with a month of free time. During that time I started to dive into the idea of working in the atelier professionally, especially after I was given the chance to apply for a start-up grant. When my application was actually approved, a lot of things came together.

Having worked for fashion companies in London, Hamburg, Stuttgart and Los Angeles, there were some reoccurring observations, that would leave me wondering and ultimately build the foundation of my business:

The massive amount of clothing being produced every season, that just ended up being overstock in the warehouses. Was this really the right way to produce with all that waste of material and resources?

The ever present pressure to design and produce faster. How were you supposed to create greatness, if you didn’t have the time to perfect the design and if you couldn’t use the best production techniques, in order to save money?

The amount of bad quality and customer complaints. Why was the perfection of quality not the ultimate goal of every product producing company?

I founded atelier boem in 2017 with the vision to change these issues and to preserve the heritage my grandpa had passed down to us. Our artisanal atelier is named after him: boem.

We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about.

Made in a traditional atelier atmosphere, where every step is done by hand, our leather goods are a work of artisanal art. We specialise in the traditional french leather craft, which was primarily established by Hermès in the 1900s. Today only Hermès itself and a small amount of ateliers around the world continue to keep the leather artisanship alive. I am very proud of the fact, that I was able to pick up such an amazing craft and that I am never getting tired of trying to become better at it.

On a personal level, I have always been passionate about bringing quality into other peoples lives and through that doing my small part into making their lives more delightful. There is so much beauty in true quality.

How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way.

I already talked about my background story, so you can tell, that it has been a long way to get here. It has been endless hours of studying, asking a million questions, being frustrated with my own skillset many times and yet coming back into the atelier everyday.

Probably most entrepreneurs will agree, having your own business, you need a never ending supply of motivation and energy. You have to find ways to never run out of this supply. That is one of the hardest things actually. There were hundreds of hurdles, that I had to overcome. I have built up my business from scratch, no funding, mostly on my own. There is not only the craft and design part of it, but I also had to learn how to become a good business woman.

I always say it like that: You have to become your own loudest cheering cheerleader. No one will pull you out of bed in the morning, no one will applaud you on a daily basis for the progress you have made and most of your fears, you will have to face on your own. So one of my biggest lessons was to find my driving force in this world and then turn it into an everyday supply of motivation.

What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?

My vision for boem is to build a young luxury brand, based on the crafting of elevated, luxurious essentials and the fostering of personal, genuine customer relationships. I think it is very important to communicate luxury in a highly transparent way. What details went into the making of these products? And what skilled hands have been crafting them? What is it, that the customer is paying for?

In our case it is artisanal products made from the most exceptional materials, impeccable craftsmanship and a traditional atelier experience. For boem it will never be about producing more products faster. Our definition of luxury is slowness and a sense of peace embodied into a product.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Berlin has so much to offer. The city is crazy big and every part of it feels very unique. My favourite areas to hang out are Kollwitzkiez, Kastanienallee and Helmholtkiez in Prenzlauer Berg, Mitte around Auguststraße, Paul-Lincke Ufer in Neukölln and the river areas around Treptower Park and Rummelsburg.

I would definitely include some of these things: Visit Berlin’s many museums, for example the Neue Nationalgalerie or Gropius Bau. Hanging out around the river Spree for some calm and relaxing hours. Eating out as much as possible! Berlin has the most amazing food scene. Some of my favourites are Mamida or Gazzo for pizza, Markthalle Pfefferberg for tacos, Daluma or Cafe Neue Liebe for all things healthy, Kitten Deli for hummus and falafel and Sofi bakery for the german bread experience. Also I would make sure to get some Döner kebap at Ugur.

I am a very picky, slow shopper (I also co-founded the vintage online shop Papa Vintage), so I don’t do big shopping sessions. But I would take my friend to Ryoko and maybe even book a chinese tea ceremony there. I just recently indulged in one and it was the most special experience.

In the warmer months so much is happening outside, everyone is sitting in cafés, or in the streets and there are so many events and parties. So I would make sure to include a Berlin night out, but also enjoy an evening of just strolling around and stop wherever it takes us.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My mom Ina has been on the journey with me from the very beginning as my biggest support and fellow leather craftswoman. My grandpa Paul Böhm was her father, so she picked up a lot of things from him, which is probably one of the reasons she is the most hands-on, crafty person I know. While we built up our first atelier in Hamburg together, the main atelier has now moved to Berlin. Although we sadly don’t work together everyday anymore, we still join forces on a lot of projects and regularly plan work visits to Berlin.
I have been fortunate enough to have found my mentor in Peter Nitz, who I got to train with in Zurich in 2019. Peter Nitz is one of the world’s most renowned leather artisans, who continuously is raising the bar in the luxury leather goods sector.

Lastly shoutout to my perfectionism, which is constantly motivating me to strive for the highest quality and best workmanship possible.😃

Website: www.atelierboem.com

Instagram: atelier.boem

Linkedin: Katharina Ilker