INTERVIEW
whilst I had experience of production and had good contacts in Italy and Asia,” remembers Ulrike. “We really believed in ourselves and our skills, but above all we had tremendous pride in the time- honoured craft of hat making. We had great support from our families and friends, and with the bank behind us we decided to go ahead. The company was named Bedacht, which means ‘thoughtful’ in German – a very apt choice for us.”
Against the odds
However, starting up a new hat company at the time was risky. A number of traditional manufacturers had closed down, and hats were not particularly prioritised by the fashion industry. “The market and customers
were not really open to a new label,” says Ulrike, “but we were certain that we had something different to offer. At our first trade fair in Düsseldorf at the beginning of 2000, we showcased our collection for Winter 2001 and we were watched with curiosity. Competitors wished us good luck… and then, against the expectations of the entire industry, we enjoyed immediate success! One of our best decisions back in those early days was to go to Paris straight away and exhibit
at Premiere Classe. That helped us enormously by raising awareness of our label and reaching international customers.” Ulrike believes that
retaining a consistent presence in Paris has helped build trust and brand loyalty, as has showing up regularly at the trade fairs in Düsseldorf, Hamburg, and Salzburg too. She says the personal touch has always been a key ingredient of success. “We had help at the start from Udo Rolf Wienand, a sales representative who was with us for ten years. We knew him from our time together at H.T.B and he had important contacts with numerous fashion houses and milliners. This helped us to get customers on board. We’ve also worked with some
of our suppliers from the beginning. In Italy for example we’ve had
very
valuable help from our friend
Maurizio who assists
us at the local level, putting new ideas into practice
and assisting at trade fairs. He’s a very important member of the Bedacht family. Maik and I also act as our own agents. We contact all the customers who are unable to attend the trade fairs and, if they wish, visit them ourselves to showcase our collections. We put customer service first, really getting to know the businesses we work with and responding to their individual needs. For a time, we also had our own hat shop! It was in the heart of the Bilk district in Düsseldorf in a very historic building. It was a heartfelt project for us, done with a lot of love and enthusiasm, although ideally, we’d have liked a shop in a busier area right in the city centre. In the end
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