LYNN — Hot off the presses: Couture Planet, a female-owned business in the Lydia Pinkham building, is starting to see a return to normalcy in its market for unique, eco-friendly, newspaper- and magazine-made handbags.
After the pandemic halted trade shows and steady orders, Couture Planet has scheduled its first few shows in more than a year, including in Texas and New Hampshire.
The annual Open Studios event at the Lydia Pinkham building has been set for Nov. 21 and 22, and people in the building have been gradually returning to in-person events and visits over the past few months.
Business partners Michelle Kane and Kathy Cormier said that although they are excited to bring their handbags to shows again, they are proceeding with caution after seeing the increase in COVID-19 cases and the severity of the new Delta variant.
“We’ll proceed along like everything is on until it’s not,” Kane said.
When COVID-19 drastically closed down the state, Kane said they were very cautious, enforcing masks and limiting who came into the workshop to necessary workers only.
Kane, and occasionally Cormier, their full-time sewer Maximo Ramirez and some part-time employees were the only people working in their workshop for a while.
Since vaccinations have been made available to the public, Kane said they have been seeing their local customers coming into the shop to say hi and check in, which is something that had not been done for a year and a half.
Couture Planet didn’t stop working during the pandemic, but transitioned quickly to incorporate masks into their inventory.
They continued producing their handbags and wallets out of old newspapers, but saw a drastic increase in the need for masks.
“We have an inventory of masks ready to go, should we need to start that up again,” Kane said.
When the business began making masks last year, Kane said that everything happened so quickly that they did not have an adequate supply of all necessary materials, such as elastics.
Kane said the businesses in the Lydia Pinkham building really came together during the pandemic, sharing resources with each other and offering support and assistance when needed.
“We were all helping each other get by,” Kane said. “This building has been a great building. It’s got a lot of comraderie and a lot of wonderful people in here and we are all here for each other.”
As the demand for Couture Planet’s masks has decreased, Kane said the sales of their handbags have been picking up.
The handbags and wallets, which are created in the Lydia Pinkham Building, are made from old newspapers and magazines, which are delivered or dropped off to the business.
Kane and Cormier sort through the papers to find photos, headlines and writing that would make a visual impact on their products. The bags, which come in a variety of shapes and sizes, include both local photos and national news from the worlds of fashion, art, food, travel, sports and more.
Kane said her friends — and even her hairdresser — will also save newspapers and magazines for her business.
“It’s a real community effort, I always like to call it,” Kane said. “This business began as a recycling project in 2009 and has since grown to shipping products across the country.”
The bags are sewn by artisans and use repurposed leather straps made by a family-owned company in New England.
Couture Planet employs the underserved and mentors students through a local jobs program and is committed to working with the community.
Kane said she is grateful for the customers and is happy that sales have been great.
With a lot of work and time dedicated to creating the bags, Kane said she is happy to see people buying the bags again and supporting her business.
