Passion for Design

Meet the extravagant designer who creates everything from scooters with matching bags to innovative furniture.

Rami Kadri's vintage Vespa Piaggio with an elongated body decorated with bright orange flames makes quite a striking statement on the roads of Dubai. Everything else he designs is equally striking. "My signature style can be described as extravagant, Bohemian and unusual," said the designer who is a managing partner at Presotto, Middle East, which specialises in home decor.

Experiment

Kadri is of Spanish, Italian and Lebanese origin and studied electromechanical engineering in the US. But he has a passion for designing and loves to experiment with different materials and ideas. His creations, on display at the Presotto showroom in Al Barsha, range from innovative furniture and home decoration items to leather bags.

Scooters

His foray into designing began with customising scooters for himself. He has a collection of original Vespa Piaggio scooters sourced from around the world and enjoys playing with the body shape, colours and seating design to create designer scooters. "When I ran out of space in my home for my collection, I put them up for sale in the showroom. Surprisingly, many customers bought them as decorative pieces for their homes," said Kadri. Encouraged by this response, he tried his hand at designing furniture and furnishings, which were also well received by his clients.

Designer bags

His love for scooters also led to the launch of Moochi, his line of designer bags. "I often go to the supermarket on my scooter and needed a bag that could hold all my shopping bags. So I designed a leather bag, called the ‘butterfly bag' that matches with my scooter and fits on the steering. My friends loved it and I was inundated with requests for similar bags. And that is how Moochi was born," said Kadri.

Natural materials

He likes to work with natural materials such as river stones and seashells. For his bags, he uses only natural leather and furs, such as rabbit, deer and python, and the bags are handstitched, making each one a unique piece. They come in interesting shapes and are decorated with real deer horn, pieces of antique silver jewellery, unusual buttons and intricate hand carving.

Practical

"Like all my creations these bags are aesthetic as well as practical. They are designed to accommodate A4-size folders and have plenty of pockets. Most of them are unisex, but I also have special designs for women," said Kadri. His favourite design, named ‘Sylvana' after his mother, is made up of multicoloured patches stitched together by hand.

"I also plan to create a line of accessories such as cosmetic bags, telephone book covers and leather laptop bags that are different from the dull bags in the market," he said.