Marina Raphael

Marina Raphael
Marina Raphael in 2024
Born
Marina Rafail-Vogiatzakis

1998 (age 27–28)
Athens, Greece
EducationSt. Catherine's British School
King's College London
OccupationHandbag designer
Years active2018 to present
RelativesDaniel Swarovski, Victoria Swarovski
Websitehttps://marinaraphael.com/

Marina Raphael (born Marina Rafail-Vogiatzakis in 1998) is a handbag designer and sixth-generation member of the Swarovski family. She is the founder and creative director of her eponymous handbag brand, Marina Raphael, has designed handbag collections for Swarovski, and is Artistic and Design Director of Handbags at fashion house Elie Saab. In 2022, she was included in Forbes Europe's 30 Under 30 list in its Arts & Culture category. The same year, she was included in Fortune Greece's 40 Under 40 list.

Early life and education

Raphael was born and raised in Athens. Her father is Greek and her mother is Swiss-Austrian. Through her mother's family, she is a sixth-generation descendant of Swarovski founder Daniel Swarovski. She graduated with an International Baccalaureate from St. Catherine's British School before completing a bachelor's degree in Business Management at King's College London.

Career

At the age of 19, Raphael founded her eponymous handbag label Marina Raphael, launching it a year later in 2018 while studying at university.

In 2024, at the age of 26, Raphael was appointed Artistic and Design Director of Handbags at fashion house Elie Saab, the first time the house had created a dedicated creative leadership role for the category. In this role, she works alongside the house's founder and creative director, Elie Saab. Raphael is responsible for designing four ready-to-wear handbag collections and two haute couture handbag collections annually. Her first designs debuted during the house's January 2025 Haute Couture show.

Marina Raphael brand

Raphael serves as designer and CEO of her eponymous label. Its handbags are produced in Florence, Italy, with quality control outsourced to Swarovski in Austria. In 2022, the brand projected revenues of US$2.6 million. Its handbags have been stocked by Harrods, Harvey Nichols, LuisaViaRoma, Neiman Marcus, Moda Operandi, and El Corte Inglés.

The brand's handbags have been carried by Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, Jessica Alba, Paris Hilton, Katie Holmes, Jennifer Lopez, Emma Roberts, and Alicia Keys.

Collaborations

Since 2020, the brand has collaborated with a number of designers and companies. These have included L'Oréal's Vichy Laboratories, for which Raphael also served as the face of its Greek advertising campaigns, influencer Evangelie Smyrniotaki, and stylist Georgia Medley. A collaboration with creative director and sustainability consultant Doina Ciobanu resulted in the brand's first sustainable handbag collection, using a form of vegan leather made as a by-product of industrial apple processing.

Raphael has also collaborated extensively with Swarovski. A collaboration announced in 2020 with Swarovski Group Global Creative Director Giovanna Battaglia Engelbert led to the first handbag line released under the Swarovski marque in the jeweller's 125-year history. A second collaboration followed in 2024, when Swarovski Creators Lab and Marina Raphael released a limited-edition Valentine's Day capsule collection of crystal-embellished handbags.

In 2022, the brand collaborated with fine jewellery designer Eugenie Niarchos on a series of bespoke handbags accompanied by a collection of non-fungible tokens.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Davis, Dominic-Madori (17 March 2021). "How a 22-year-old heiress launched a handbag line and within 3 years landed the Netherlands' Queen Máxima as a fan". Business Insider. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
  2. 1 2 Oreshkin, Gennady (7 June 2022). "Innovation And Heritage: Striking The Balance With Marina Raphael". Prestige. Rush Hour Media. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  3. 1 2 Theodosi, Natalie (16 November 2021). "Marina Raphael, Giovanna Engelbert Debut Swarovski Bag Collection". WWD. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 De Klerk, Amy (12 November 2024). "Marina Raphael to join Elie Saab as artistic director of handbags". Harper's Bazaar. Hearst. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Marina Rafail-Vogiatzaki". Forbes. 2022. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  6. 1 2 "40 Under 40 2022". Fortune Greece. 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2026.
  7. ↑ "Marina Raphael × Costarellos". Wonderland. 7 November 2019. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  8. ↑ "Marina Raphael A.E." Union of Hellenic Chambers. n.d. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Chan-Danisi, Angela (4 November 2024). "Elie Saab Names Marina Raphael Artistic And Design Director Of Handbags". Forbes. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
  10. ↑ "Exclusive interview: Marina Raphael on joining Elie Saab". Mojeh. Retrieved 8 September 2026.
  11. ↑ "Marina Raphael joins Elie Saab". Marie Claire. Retrieved 8 September 2026.
  12. ↑ "Marina Raphael on her new role at Elie Saab". Hello!. Retrieved 8 September 2026.
  13. 1 2 3 Davis, Dominic-Madori (17 March 2021). "Swarovski crystal heiress Marina Raphael explains how she achieved record-breaking sales by selling smaller handbags, donating to charity, and using snail mail to reach customers". Business Insider. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  14. ↑ Christodoulou, Kostis (5 May 2022). "Μαρίνα Ραφαήλ: Η Ελληνίδα που μπήκε στη λίστα Forbes με τις τσάντες της" [Marina Raphael: The Greek woman who entered the Forbes list with her handbags] (in Greek). PowerGame. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  15. ↑ Tsantaki, Sandy (14 May 2022). "Μαρίνα Ραφαήλ-Βογιατζάκη: Από την Αθήνα, στη Ντόχα και τη λίστα του "Forbes 30 under 30"" [Marina Raphael-Vogiatzaki: From Athens to Doha and the "Forbes 30 under 30" list] (in Greek). mononews. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  16. ↑ F. Tatiana Ngo Bii (19 February 2020). "Marina Rafael: Swarovski sixth generation forges her own path". The Global Fashion Business Journal. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
  17. ↑ Theodosi, Natalie (18 October 2019). "LuisaViaRoma, Handbag Designer Marina Raphael Unveil Sustainability Ambitions". WWD. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  18. ↑ "Marina Raphael: An Ode to the New Beginnings". L'Officiel UK. 1 May 2023. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
  19. ↑ Waheed, Jabeen (30 September 2022). "Jennifer Lopez, Megan Fox and Jessica Alba are all rocking this new luxury handbag brand on the red carpet". Glamour. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
  20. ↑ De Klerk, Amy (23 November 2022). "Marina Raphael on how a good handbag should be a conversation starter". Harper's Bazaar.
  21. ↑ Theodosi, Natalie (25 November 2020). "How Emerging Bag Designer Marina Raphael Defied 2020 Market Challenges — and Thrived". WWD. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
  22. ↑ "Industry Update: Dispatches From The Fashion World". Elle. Hearst. 22 October 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
  23. ↑ Lei, Angela. "Marina Raphael Defines The New Luxury And Launches Styles In Vegan Leather". Forbes. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
  24. ↑ Beghelli, Chiara (5 March 2021). "Swarovski vira verso il lusso e non esclude più la Borsa". Il Sole 24. Milan. p. 30.
  25. ↑ Theodosi, Natalie (5 March 2020). "New Accessories Players to Watch in Paris". WWD. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  26. ↑ Lockwood, Lisa (31 January 2024). "Swarovski Launches Valentine's Day Capsule With Marina Raphael". WWD. Retrieved 14 June 2026.
  27. ↑ McDowell, Maghan; Schulz, Madeleine (16 May 2022). "The Vogue Business NFT Tracker". Vogue Business. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  28. ↑ "Marina Raphael and Eugenie Niarchos on how they created the most exclusive fashion NFT in the world". Hello Magazine. 22 March 2023. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  29. ↑ Κράββαρη, Χριστίνα-Μαρία (November 2022). "Queens of Blockchain". Marie Claire. Greece. p. 66.