OCCIDENTAL LEATHER IS MOVING UP
Almost 40 years ago, building contractor Darryl Thurner of Occidental, California, got a little tired of dropping tools on the job. The problem? No quality tool bags were available that fit the special needs of career carpenters.
Being a clever guy, Thurner set out to tackle the problem himself. Based on his own experience, he came up with a rugged design for a “hand-specific,” leather tool bag to carry everyday carpenters’ gear in a well-organized, intuitive way. He took his idea to a California saddle shop and got the leatherworker to make his design. As prototypes evolved, he made some bags for fellow workers.
The tool bags caught on like wildfire, but the saddle-maker did not want to keep on making them. That’s when Thurner taught himself, with local artisans, how to sew leather.
He began to build tool bags by hand in a barn workshop, at his ranch west of Occidental. His work-a-day innovations, which used rugged, high-quality leather, were a nifty blend of old-world craftsmanship and modern technical know-how. He sold his products to local craftsmen and by mail order.
“Leather (tool bag systems) holds up better. Nylon is more expensive for us to make. Nylon takes more time .... We sell more leather bags than nylon.”
— Michael Malley, vice-president of operations, Occidental Leather
Designs quickly evolved. For instance, before 1979, no commercial
