After graduating in 1997 from the Rhode Island School of Design, Michael Harris pursued a career that took him to luggage manufacturer and retailer Samsonite.
He eventually left Samsonite, where he was a senior designer, and founded Grayman Studio LLC a few months ago. It’s a “soft goods” luggage design and development consultancy, which he runs out of his Cranston home.
In the luggage industry, soft goods are items made of fabrics such as nylon and polyester. The idea is to help clients with everything from seeing how they could reduce manufacturing costs to recommending how to make their products look better or be more functional.
Harris also has developed products, such as a large backpack and a smaller one for women, a large shopping tote, and a handbag. Eventually he may produce his own products for the commercial market.
Starting his own business required learning skills beyond design.
“I had to train myself on some new things,” he said, including creating a website for the business.
Scott Blake is a PBN staff writer. Contact him at Blake@PBN.com.