Written TJ Laggis, Photos by Tucker Hemphill
Nestled on the corner, where Liberty St. meets Bull, shaded by the tender hanging moss, is one of Savannah’s most charming treasures – Satchel.
From the outside, Satchel glows; the afternoon sun illuminating the white bricks and big windows. On the inside, the shop is pulsing with life. Bags and wallets of all colors, shapes and sizes line the walls and, as your eyes draw you from one section to the next, you are met with a warm wave of Southern hospitality.
The half store, half studio creates a unique and ambient shopping experience, unlike anywhere else. The hum of the sewing machines and the smell of fresh leather fill the air, as you peruse the tables and shelves, filled with high quality, one of a kind accessories.
Satchel is stunning by itself, but the humble woman behind the scenes is the one who makes everything in the shop shimmer. Elizabeth Seeger, a Louisiana native, came to SCAD with the hopes of finding her identity in the art world.
“I think I was always pretty artsy,” Seeger said. Growing up in the countryside, art was often her form entertainment and quickly turned into a passionate pursuit, by the time she reached high school. When she arrived in Savannah, she immediately fell in love with SCAD, as well as the city and its small-town feel.
Majoring in fashion was a natural decision for Seeger, fueled by her fascination with color and her joy for hands on design. Her mother and older sister were skilled in creating and sewing slip covers for furniture, and those genes had been passed on to Seeger as well. “I always loved the idea of making something from nothing,” Seeger said.
She excelled in SCAD’s creative atmosphere, and by her senior year she was designing and making her own handbags for nights out with her friends. Using left-over high-end fabrics that her mother sent her, Seeger’s bags were accessories that often caught people’s attention. On one afternoon in particular, while getting lunch at The Mansion on Forsyth, an employee noticed Seeger’s bag and asked her where she got it, in the hopes of getting one for herself. Seeger simply responded, “Thank you. I actually I made it myself.” Next thing she knew, The Mansion on Forsyth had asked her if she could design a collection of bags for them to sell at the hotel. “That’s when I knew I could actually do this,” Seeger said.
Soon after, she graduated in 2005 with a BFA in fashion design. The possibilities for her future laid primarily in two cities: Los Angles and New York City, which held the bulk of the nation’s fashion employers. As her apartment lease in Savannah expired, she had yet to make a decision between the two destinations. So, Seeger decided to move back to her hometown, Covington, Louisiana, for the summer. She, like many Southern Louisiana residents in the summer of 2005, was unaware of what awaited her in the coming months.
Hurricane Katrina made landfall in August, devastating Louisana’s southern territory. In the wake of the tragedy, Seeger knew she couldn’t set up shop in or around New Orleans. “I couldn’t start selling handbags there, when people were trying to put roofs back on their homes,” Seeger said. “I had decided that I didn’t want to give up my car and live in a shoebox in New York, so I chose to move out to L.A.”
Seeger ended up only spending a little less than a year on the West Coast. The trip to California, although short, was fruitful in many ways. Seeger’s friends, who had already been living there, helped her to make contacts in the fashion industry. Ultimately, though, her soul was calling her back to her roots. “The South is what I know and love,” Seeger said.
Louisiana was still in the process of healing and rebuilding, so Seeger looked for a new place she could call home. But the place she chose, in the end, wasn’t new at all. Savannah had always been the perfect fit for her. Once she realized she wanted to return to costal Georgia, she immediately started dreaming up a plan. She signed a lease for a storefront on Broughton Street, before she had even moved back to the city. The vision of having her very own store was quickly becoming a reality.
Satchel opened its doors for the first time in October of 2006. Initially, Seeger’s inventory was stocked mainly by designer retail brands, with only a handful of her own custom items.
For two years the shop ran smoothly, but in 2008 the economic climate and fashion trends shifted in Savannah. Seeger started to notice people coming to Satchel were much more intrigued by the handmade accessories that Seeger had for sale around the store.
She made a bold decision in 2009. “Let’s make everything in shop,” Seeger said to her new partner, Mahala Lewis. From that moment on, the two worked tirelessly to transform Satchel into a fully in-house brand. Satchel’s inventory was now exclusively conceived, designed, and manufactured, by Seeger and Lewis in their Broughton Street location.
Despite its newfound success, Satchel faced yet another threat, late in 2013. A big buyer was sweeping through Broughton Street, trying to push major chain brands and retailers into the highly profitable real estate. Many local businesses were forced out of their storefronts and had to seek out new venues.
Satchel found itself a home on the corner of Bull Street and Liberty Street. “It ended up being a blessing in disguise,” Seeger said. She split the shop in two, keeping the front as a store and converting the back into a design studio. “What you think are conscious decisions are not decisions at all, it’s just what you do to solve your own problems,” Seeger said.
Since the move, Satchel has flourished, adding on 6 more “Satchelettes” to its staff. “The key is to surround yourself with really good people,” Seeger said, “build a community.”
Seeger began releasing two collections a year, a fall/winter and a spring/summer, working to streamline designs to meet the growing demand for her accessories. With a rise in sales and success, Satchel is now known throughout the South East for its unique assortment of bags, wallets, clutches and more. Magazines such as Lucky, Southern Living, Fortune, Travel + Leisure, and Garden & Gun have praised Satchel’s products for their functionality and wide array of materials, patterns, and designs.
When asked about her secret to success, Seeger responded, “Ask all the questions. If you don’t ask, the answer will always be no.” Even after thirteen years of experience, she is still constantly learning how to run her business and the more business grows, the more questions she asks.
The praise and success are humbling for Seeger, who doesn’t aspire to be the center of attention. “One of the most rewarding things is seeing people I don’t know carry the bags I make, whether it’s someone down on Broughton Street or a person in the JFK airport,” Seeger said.
Satchel has gone on to start up a sister company, by the name of Port City Sewing Factory and open a new location in the Savannah Airport.
Seeger is still a dreamer at heart. She plans to continue growing her brand over the next few years, hoping to add more locations in the South East, in cities such as Charleston and New Orleans. But in the meantime, you can find Seeger sitting at her vintage sewing machine, laughing with her friends, and chatting with customers, as they fall in love with her latest creations.
“I love what I do,” Seeger said. “I’ve learned a lot to get where I am right now, and if I had the chance, I wouldn’t take any of it back.”
