As he reveals, he does not come from a family of pilots. In fact, his studies and previous profession had absolutely nothing to do with his current business. But the risk and the passion paid off
Distinctions, international reviews and exports of 95% of its handmade products to countries outside the European Union, include the hatchery of Panagiotis Skantzaris, based in Nice, where it is among the best, in the world, companies for the production of handmade hats and the most successful Greek export companies.
In the interview given to APE-MPE, the pilot and owner of the company, Panagiotis Skantzaris points out that he does not come from a family of pilots, in fact his studies and previous profession had absolutely nothing to do with his current business. But the risk and the passion paid off.
«I am studying marketing with a master’s degree in finance while working for 14 years as a bank clerk. But for years I had the desire to make things with my hands, constructions as a hobby more and the circumstances brought it so that after a change in my work at the time, I found myself frustrated and marginalized and accidentally came into complete contact with the hat area. » As he characteristically states: “I had gone on a trip to London and while we were walking outside a well-known hat shop, my wife wanted to give me a gift of a tragedy which was quite expensive. So when we returned to Athens I found that the tragedy from London had nothing to envy in comparison with the Greek tragedies that I usually bought which were of the order of 8 euros. That is, the cuts and the stitches were more or less the same, the materials were a little different. So I found the manufacturer who made the tragias here in Greece and bought 10. When I sold them on the internet at 60 euros they were surprised. People started asking me for more, while they also started asking me for hats. I met the manufacturer who has been making some hats here since 1960, I sat down next to him and started learning the job. Because the hats I made were liked by the outside world, I started trading them“, Characteristically mentions in his interview Mr. Skantzaris.
From 2014, as he points out, he officially started his work as a pilot. You will not find ready-made hats in the store, explains its owner to APE-MPE, as the demand from the orders is very high. «We make hats only to order, we mainly make the men’s hat and some unisex designs. We have 150 colors in felt, 100 colors of ribbon, five different types of felt, we have mats, panamas that one can imagine in a hat, we make it. So someone can send us a photo of Clint Eastwood or Indiana Jones and ask us to prepare it. In fact, we recently made Allen Delon’s hat from the movie “Le Samurai”.
It is noted that since 2014 the company has sold about 20,000 hats worldwide, while American lifestyle and fashion website – includes it in the 10 best handicraft stores on an international product sales website. It is impressive that 95% of the company’s sales are related to exports outside the European Union, through customs, while the remaining 5% are within the European Union. In Greece, during the years that the company has been active, only three or four hats have been given, the owners of which were ambassadors and foreigners.
«One day we were informed that the popular singer Celine Dion took one of our hats and she liked it very much, we have many famous artists in our clientele, while some have ordered 30 or even 40 hats“, Says Mr. Skantzaris.
With the most economical hat that is the bestseller of the company starting from 135 euroswhile the most expensive to have been sold at 500 euros, the locomotive tells APE-MPE that the majority of hats on the market are mainly woolen felts, usually of Asian origin. In the business of Mr. Skantzaris they are supplied felt either from beaver, hare or rabbit hair “so our product”, as he explains, “Yes, it is more expensive, but you know that you will wear it in the rain, you will wrinkle it, it will never lose its shape, it will never discolor».
Trying to explain it in simple words art of the locomotivePanagiotis Skantzaris, says: «There are industrial hats that have invested in molds, presses, etc. and carbon the same hat a million times. However in the handmade hat there are many techniques. What we do is to have a basic shape and after all the configuration we do it by hand, that is, we work the whole shape of the hat by hand, that is, by clicking on the basic shape we can make it more square, or more rounded, or with a slope to the side, that one can imagine. I would also characterize it as a form of sculpture».
But why choose a hat of your own making? The owner of the business answers that “you will wear this hat for example at your daughter’s wedding or later you will give it to your son. We belong to this category making hats that become family heirlooms. And this is something our customers tell us. We are told that we have found in you what we were looking for the real thing – ‘the real thing’. “
Asked if people love hatshe answers: «Yes. People love hats and we see an increase in their use. In fact, because we also trade in locomotives, such as felt, ribbons and things we make here such as leather sweatbands, ribbons, lining, we see that many locomotives around the world have sprung up so we believe that the hat will have a very large increase in next years”.
In terms of domestic demand for the hat and if it is preferred by the Greeks as an accessory, Mr. Skantzaris states that it is a matter of culture. «It has to do with the stimuli we receive. When you see famous artists not taking their hats off and more and more people on the scene wearing hats, I think this as a fact is a legacy for the future in terms of hat preference. However, I am of the opinion that our standards as a country will also be affected. Hats have been worn by people since antiquity, perhaps even before prehistoric times. The fact that man does not wear hats in human evolution is very recent, that is, from the 60’s onwards, it ceased to be a daily necessary accessory. But I believe that the hat as a hat, or as a headgear will always be worn by the people, whether it is in the form of a formal attire, or a military attire, or a protective attire for the cold, for the sun».
As for the seasons in hats, he answers: «Because we sell all over the world, so for us there is no season in hats. Specifically in North America and Northern Europe – in Scandinavia in the summer, imagine that they wear woolen hats as lighter, so what is winter for us here, for them it is spring. However, in terms of workload, according to the maker, there are two seasons, the classic Christmas one where the hat is a popular gift and the second is the one they are going through now that many weddings take place, as abroad it is a very common accessory in these circumstances.
As for his own reward, he answers: “The feeling of making something with your hands, sending it to the other side of the world and then receiving a five-star review and writing thank you or sending you a photo from his wedding or his vacation in his hat , is unique. I can not exchange it with any other pleasant experience I have lived as a professional all these years. The response of the people is our greatest reward».
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