David Chu takes Tumi to heights of luxury

MANILA, Philippines - Award-winning designer David Chu just can’t stay away from fashion. In 2004, his retirement lasted a mere six days before he started working on his own line. Now the founder and former CEO of mega fashion label Nautica is weaving his design magic as executive creative director for upscale luggage and accessories brand Tumi.   

A Taiwanese immigrant to the US, Chu spent his formative years in New York and Connecticut. His path to design greatness, however, was by chance circumstance: originally an architecture student, Chu took a design class at the Fashion Institute of Technology, where his drawing skills caught the eye of a professor who suggested he try his hand at clothing. Becoming a women’s wear designer was hardly a popular choice for an Asian immigrant who might have been expected to become an engineer or a doctor. 

Eventually, Chu returned to Taiwan to start an export business with friends. They lost all their capital after just a year and a half. Unperturbed by the setback, Chu returned to the US in 1983, where he launched his lifestyle brand, Nautica. It was his interpretation of six sailing jackets, taking technical function and adding the elements that characterized the best of American sporty design, that put Chu and Nautica on the fashion map. They were an instant hit with Barneys and Bloomingdale’s, garnering orders of $700,000 in sales the first year. Nautica grew to generate sales of $1 billion, and established Chu as one of the major designers in the US. In 2003, Chu sold Nautica to VF Corporation for $576 million.

Last year, Chu received the opportunity to expand his flair for design when he was appointed executive creative director for Tumi. Chu says his job “isn’t just about sketching nice bags.” Rather, he says, “it’s about developing what Tumi could be in the next 10 years. I’m moving it to be more of a design company, not just a luggage company.” 

Chu’s design and expertise has helped Tumi launch various new collections, taking Tumi’s signature black ballistic nylon in a more luxurious direction with Italian vachetta leathers, polished nickel hardware, and eventually, color. He has also given the company an image makeover, which includes new, high-style ad campaigns featuring supermodel Shalom Harlow and revamping the interior of Tumi stores to reflect the brand’s new elevated direction.    

Thanks to Chu’s stylish and creative direction, Tumi has further strengthened its enviable reputation as the preferred brand for luxury bags and accessories in just a short time. Says Chu, “At the end of the day, people don’t buy a brand — they buy because the product is great and that’s when the brand becomes valuable and iconic.”

Here in the Philippines, the Tumi boutique is located at the ground floor of Greenbelt 5, Makati City.