OUR STORY

Hyde founder Romy Belanger was raised in rural Quebec where she learned to make almost everything she wore. While studying abroad in Morocco, she visited one of the most renowned leather tanneries in the world. The personal dedication they showed to the raw material inspired her to bring it back to life.

For Romy, creating leather goods is an intimate process. Before deciding on grain or thickness, she thinks about how a design will be used and where it will be worn. Once she’s ready to cut a pattern, she treats the raw material as a second skin. Completely opposed to an industrial approach, she guides the leather as if it were a living being.

After years of practice, Romy has found that gently taming and suggesting shape yields the most elegant results. Even when she started small with wallets back in 1987, she always matched her meticulousness with curiosity. Travelling around the globe, she has studied various techniques and designs that have helped her cultivate a singular yet international style. Today, she has a few apprentices of her own and spends most of her time crafting with them in her Montréal studio. She still makes time to learn new techniques and exhibits at tradeshows all around the world.