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Full-time UW student and fashion company exec

September 20, 2017 By Petar Djordjevic

Liv Schreiber models one of her purses. Photo courtesy Liv Schreiber

To make money during the summer, some students mow lawns or flip burgers. Liv Schreiber’s summer job was a bit different — she was the boss of four summer interns in New York City this summer, at her family’s company.

Latico Leathers is a family leather goods company run, in part, by UW junior Olivia Schreiber, who is following in the footsteps of her father, who started Latico when he was a few years older than she, 30 years ago. Among her other responsibilities at the company, Liv started a line of handbags called Latico by Liv.

“Fresh out of college, my dad began selling leather goods out of his car trunk store-to-store in NYC,” Schreiber says, and it proved to be popular at specialty boutiques in Greenwich Village. Even members of The Grateful Dead rock group and crew became fans.

Paul Schreiber eventually met his wife at a trade show. Liv Schreiber wanted to work in the business even at a young age, but she first had to prove to her dad she could design and sell a product. She created her first handbag when she was 9. It was titled ‘Le Cirque’ and was inspired by the circular design of her Backstreet Boys CDs. The bag was featured in Garnet Hill Catalog unexpectedly.

Some of the Latico by Liv purses and handbags.

 

In addition to her role with Latico, Schreiber is also involved on campus. Liv has hosted trunk shows with her products for several sororities in addition to other areas around campus. She has a full class schedule, involvement in other student organizations, and works at a fitness center near campus. “I thrive in chaos,” says Schreiber. “I hate standing still.”

She credits coming to Madison with helping her business. “Going to UW–Madison expanded my network and enabled me to meet friends from all over the country,” she says, and this included her interns. Two of the four are Wisconsin natives — Reilly Koch, a junior from Waunakee, and Ivy Hamilton, a junior from Milwaukee.

Schreiber lived in the Entrepreneurial Learning Community in Sellery Hall during her freshman year, where she was awarded a $500 grant to start Latico by Liv as well as her own fashion line, Darty Laundry.

“You’re never too young to start doing what you love,” she says. “And remember – a no is never a no, it’s always an opportunity.”