One of my passions is supporting the small workshops and artisans who devote their lives to producing the world’s beautiful products, often using skills passed down through generations. Well-made products require honed skills and a little TLC, which a mass-production line cannot provide.

My company Belen Echandia supports the work of skilled artisans by having all our bags produced in Italy and Spain in small, family-run workshops, whose skills have been developed over generations. As a result all B.E. bags are the result of hours of attention to detail and made in very limited numbers. It is increasingly difficult to find such workshops because many have closed with the advent of mass-produced products. If this continues, the outcome will inevitably be the closure of many smaller upscale labels leading to a lack of well-made products and less consumer choice.

I love the high street but I also relish finding exclusives and little-known labels. As Drapers magazine editor Josephine Collins recently pointed out, the future could see a large percentage of fashion companies owned by a few big players. This would mean less diversity and a lot less consumer choice. With this in mind I recently began a project to scour the world for talent and fine workmanship, for the benefit of designers and consumers alike.

Nicknamed ‘Designer Travels’, the idea is manifold - a voyage of discovery and education about people all over the world and the traditions and skills they sustain, a giant global shopping trip in search of wonderful colours and fabrics and workmanship and the opportunity to collaborate with some of these artists to make some great new pieces for B.E. I plan to write about what I find for your benefit and theirs.

I set up this site to chart my journey and report on the things I come across on my travels and during my life as the Creative Director of Belen Echandia. I am going to have a lot of fun, meet some wonderful people and see some great things. I hope I can somehow make a difference and keep you entertained in the process.