SINCE taking over as creative director of Loewe in 2008 (after a successful stint at Mulberry), Stuart Vevers has brought a newness to the 165-year old luxury brand while keeping true to its heritage of quality leather and beautiful craftsmanship.

He redesigned the 1975 Amazona bag, for instance, with bold and playful colours, metal parts and new construction, transforming it into the label's best-selling product and, pushed the leather brand forward by taking to the runway a ready-to-wear collection of apparel and leather accessories in Paris Fashion Week every season.

From the slouchy "Granada" hobo to shooting a campaign for this season's new "Flamenco" bag in Barcelona and incorporating the rich tile designs of the Alhambra Palace in southern Spain for the Spring/Summer 2012 collection, there is always an overriding Spanish flavour present in Vevers' vision for Loewe.

Q: What was the first thing you did when you joined Loewe in 2008?

A: I changed the logo from the finer text to a bolder "Loewe Madrid 1846" -- because the brand needs to be proud of what it stands for, which includes a leather expertise that traces back more than 165 years and I wanted people to know that Loewe is from Spain (not France as thought by many based on the LVMH connection).

It was also important for me to create a language of clothing for Loewe, which was better known for its bags, and I wanted the clothing to have a strong point of view with a focus on leather, obviously, and fabrics for print.

Q: What brought about the strong Spanish connection in your vision for the brand?

A: It's interesting when you go to Spain into a brand like Loewe.

The Spanish-ness of the brand gives me a point of difference.

Today, there are many French and Italian luxury houses, but there is only one luxury house in Spain and that is Loewe.

Spanish culture is known all over the world for its amazing art and others, and the Spanish connection allows me to make Loewe more unique.

Q: Which are your favourite pieces from the Spring Summer 2012 collection?

A: The super lightweight leather pieces at the beginning of the show where you can reverse and wear on either the napa or suede side.

The construction of the garment is perfect from the inside and on the outside in every aspect.

For bags, the slouchy "Granada" shoulder bag which has an easy soft shape with masculine touches and leather handcrafting.

Q: Who is the Loewe woman you design for?

A: The Loewe woman is grown up, pulled together and groomed with a noble attitude.

She's young and a little bit provocative hence the bold colours.

It's what I've discovered about the characteristic of women in Spain, my favourite being Paloma Picasso.

Q: Your future plans?

A: Keep pushing the brand forward and being relevant by doing collaborations with artists for print and different designers (like Katie Hillier) whom I admire; refurbishing our existing stores at an aggressive pace with the new Peter Marino-design concept which is more in tune with the brand's new direction and, grow more in terms of Loewe's rare personal service and made-to-order, not just for bags but across clothes and accessories.