Spotlight: Orox Leather Co.

Rooted in Oaxacan heritage and shaped by Oregon’s creative spirit, Orox blends traditional techniques with modern design to create leather goods meant to last a lifetime. From bags and wallets to belts and everyday essentials, each piece is crafted with care and built to endure. In a world of fast fashion, Orox stands for quality, sustainability, and the kind of artistry that can be carried — and passed down — for generations. The Portland Office of Small Business sat down with Levi from Orox Leather Co. for the interview below. 

Tell us about Orox Leather Co.

Levi: A part of our story is from Oregon and the other part goes back four generations to my great-grandfather. He started making leather accessories because of his love for baseball. He got so good at making gloves and other gear that he was able to sponsor his own team. I don't know how well they did, but I have to assume that they were the envy of the other teams because of the mitts and other leather gear they had!  

My grandfather, who played for the baseball team, learned leather work and decided to start his own business making leather sandals. Our family still owns the house where that shop once stood, and I’ve been there myself. My father continued the leather tradition and began making leather murals as well. He toured around the country and met a group of Japanese businessmen who invited him to Japan to work in their top-of-the-line leather workshop. There, he learned about Japanese design — minimal, simple, and focused on longevity. 

Orox wasn’t born until my older brother attended Portland State University. During his senior year, he was asked to come up with a business he would be passionate about. He saw how much people in Portland value handmade, locally sourced goods, and he thought about our father’s work with leather. That inspired him to start a leather business in Oregon. When naming it, he combined “OR” for Oregon and “OX” for Oaxaca, creating the four-letter name Orox. 

In the beginning, we made adjustable sandals. Then we started creating wallets and bags and quickly realized people could purchase accessories year-round, while sandals sold only in the summer. So, we shifted toward a full line of leather accessories. 

波特蘭如何塑造您的企業？ 

Levi: Portland has opened the door for us to create locally made goods, to keep our workshop here, and to showcase the craft. People in Portland want to see us continue to craft here and want to support things made locally. 

If you could go back to the beginning, what would you have done differently when you first started the business? 

Levi: When we opened our workshop, we launched a shop, a new product line, an online store, and wholesale all at once. We had over 60 different products! So, I would say: slow down. Tackle one thing at a time, build a solid product to invest all of your resources in, and then grow from there.  

What do you enjoy most about having a small business? 

Levi: I enjoy the opportunity to not only guide people in learning about leather work but also talk to customers to get the right feedback. This business allows us to be very flexible and responsive to what the customers want and what our employees want.  

What role does your community play?  

Levi: Our community is made up of people who love culture — not only their culture, but others as well. Our customers seek knowledge through experience. They travel to Oaxaca or Japan not just to bring something back, but to immerse themselves in those experiences. That open-mindedness is what makes our community so strong. 

What’s been your biggest success so far? 

Levi: Our success lies in our ability to adapt. We saw it during COVID, when we were still able to make sales with a small team and stay active in the community. Being a small family business and integrating our employees as part of that family have also made us stronger. 

What’s been your biggest challenge? 

Levi: Because we’re a small, family-run business, we have to take things one step at a time and make sure the business side develops fully. The biggest challenge is to equip ourselves with the right tools, the right knowledge, and the right networking. We've been learning as we go. Sometimes we created challenges by trying to do too much at once. 

What's your best advice for someone just starting a business? 

Levi: Find the one thing you want to focus on and give it 100%. Once we found that one product, it was easy to expand from there. If you try to tackle too many things, you lose focus on where your energy should go. So dial in on the one service or the one product that you want to push, and grow from there.