Rugged Meets Refined

Will Leather Goods

Bill Adler may have begun his career on the big screen in the 1970s, but it was during the Screen Actor’s Guild strike that he discovered his true calling, when he began hawking handmade belts to make ends meet.

After many subsequent years spent perfecting the craft, he founded Will Leather Goods in 2007, and soon counted among his stockists American Rag, Nordstrom, and Japanese department store chain Isetan, but this October, Bill reached a milestone with the grand opening of his first brick-and-mortar store in Venice Beach.

It has all the character to match the brand – rustic building, brick walls, reclaimed wood shelves – the atmosphere altogether more reminiscent of an Oregon farm (where the family business is based) than the California coast. The light-flooded, 1,700 sq ft space is filled with the full range of Made In America collections, including men’s, women’s, an outdoor and travel line, plus small accessories like keychains and clutches. We particularly love the ‘Found’ collection, where each piece features a story-telling vintage or upcycled material – take the Dhurrie Totes, handmade and featuring the prints of 75-year-old rugs Bill found in the hills of New Mexico, or the limited edition Batik bags with Indonesian wax-dyed Batik fabric. Rugged chic!