Here’s To You, Sir David Attenborough
We meant to write this sooner. But then we thought — why rush? At LUC8K, the number 8 is everything. Sir David turned 100 on May 8th. We’re celebrating one month later, quietly, on our own terms. That feels right.
We love the number 8. At LUC8K, we think there’s something quite magical about it. I found it to be particularly auspicious when I lived, worked and played in Hong Kong — and the owner of the company I was familiar with bid nearly $1 million for his private car number plate featuring the “8” — and he won. How lucky is that?
To us mere mortals at LUC8K, the number 8 is also more than a number. It is ingrained in who we are and what we stand for. It represents luck (and LUC8K) and it stands for infinite possibilities. It also stands for human connection, and the fact that small actions can sometimes create something much bigger and more powerful in our daily lives and adventures.
So, it feels somehow fitting that Sir David Attenborough celebrated his 100th birthday on May 8th — and what better reason could there be to celebrate?
As we put the champagne on ice and prepare to celebrate our own special anniversary this year — LUC8K is now ten years young — I thought it would be nice to pause for a moment, and pay tribute to a man who has spent an entire century helping humanity (and little old me) fall in love with the natural world.
The Things That Truly Matter
For as long as I can remember, Sir David has been my own personal nature guide. He took me gently by the hand and led me into oceans, through rainforests, across mountains, deserts and grasslands. Through the wonder of television, he took me out of my parents’ living room into places I never knew existed. He made a little girl obsessed with Barbie suddenly become infatuated with gorillas. He made Karen Olivo, our LUC8K founder and CEO, fall in love with beautiful, gentle, majestic giraffes.
He made us all care. And to me, changing hearts and minds is one of the most important things any human being can ever do.
Sir David truly understands wildlife — not purely as entertainment or as something existing for human benefit alone — but as something precious, interconnected and worthy of protecting.
Through his storytelling, he helped the world realise that every single species matters. Every gorilla and giraffe. Every bumblebee. Every shark. Every cute, tiny poisonous frog hiding beneath rainforest leaves.
Through his incredible shared life’s work, I learnt from an early age that nature is not separate from humanity — we are part of it. We are all connected. The insects that pollinate our crops. The oceans that regulate our climate. The forests that sustain life. The air we breathe. The delicate balance that connects every single living thing on Earth.
And you know what? Sir David was right all along.
It all matters.
Belief Is A Powerful Thing
What I love most about Sir David is not that I desperately want him to be my honorary grandpa, or even his peerless knowledge and fearless mission to make us all aware of the damage we are doing to our home on Earth — it’s his ability to make people feel.
Whenever he speaks about this beautiful, precious little planet of ours, you can hear the love in his voice. His passion. The wonder. The heartbreak. The urgency. The hope. Even whilst confronting climate change, extinction, habitat destruction, and environmental collapse, Sir David has never stopped believing in us as a species. He has never stopped believing that humanity can do better. Even after witnessing so much change over a hundred years, he still believes with all his heart that people are capable of protecting this Earth.
And honestly? I believe him. Because of him and other amazing people like him, children grew up dreaming of becoming zoologists, filmmakers, researchers, conservationists, veterinarians, and wildlife protectors.
Because of him, me and millions of other children looked at animals not with indifference, but with awe, and it will stay with us forever. Sir David Attenborough gave Nature a voice, and through that utterly unmistakable voice of his, he not only reminds us of the pure, unadulterated beauty of life on earth — he reminds us who we are.
Here’s To The Pioneers Of Humanity
I’m obsessed with human nature — the choices we make, the colours we choose, and why we are attracted to certain things. We’re all nature lovers at LUC8K too, and our own very rigorous hiring process (“you might be exceptionally good at what you do, but do you also give a sh*t about the planet? You do? Great, can you start on Monday?”) reflects this.
It’s perhaps why Sir David’s message resonates so deeply with our small yet passionate team of full-time ecowarriors and wizards. Caring for wildlife isn’t just something we talk about for a campaign or social media likes, loves, and shares. It’s actually at the heart of everything we do, and LUC8K has shared many passionate views on the subject since we were born in 2016.
It’s why we chose Sophie — a sassy, gorgeous 20ft tall giraffe — to proudly serve as our global brand ambassador, and it’s why we partner with the GCC (Global Conservation Corporation) in Africa to help educate the next generation of wildlife conservationists all over the continent.
It’s why conservation, sustainability, and responsible production remains central to our mission and close to our hearts.
It’s why, whenever possible, we choose to do things the right way rather than the easy way. It is never the cheapest way — far from it, sadly — but we believe it is the ONLY way luxury brands should operate, if they don’t already.
All our bespoke bags handmade in France are produced in small batches, using responsible production methods and carefully sourced materials. Not because it’s fashionable or because it makes for good marketing — LUC8K pieces are made this way because we genuinely care about the future of our planet — and our actions should always reflect our values.
Explore how we make our bags →
Sustainable Luxury: The Choices Are Ours To Make
I don’t know the names of each and every single one of our cows, but I do know they are well looked after. They roam free in wide open French countryside, and the exquisite Bull Poney leather we use is a by-product of the meat industry. There is no waste, and there is no way we’d work with any company that does not adhere to strict European rules on animal treatment and environmental protection laws and practices. It is simply not in our nature.
It does seem strange that I am worshipping at the altar of Sir David whilst being passionately involved in an industry that uses animal hides to create beautiful items for human pleasure. I get that it actually sounds highly hypocritical of me to even be writing this piece. I completely understand that.
Sir David has spent most of his life reminding us that every choice matters. What we buy. What we consume. How we travel. How we treat wildlife. How we treat one another. The future is built from millions of individual decisions made every day, and I chose to join the LUC8K team because they genuinely care, and their actions speak louder than words.
When people decide on which luxury leather goods they are going to invest in, they too have a choice. Nothing makes my blood boil quite like the fact that most other legacy luxury brands use greenwashing to sell more products. Brands that don’t care how their leather is processed, where it comes from, the impact their factories have on the environment — they are now increasingly becoming extinct, and irrelevant to a new generation who demand transparency and meaningful, responsible design.
They want their ethical leather handbags to last a lifetime, and they don’t like to see stockpiles of luxury goods go up in smoke because of overproduction.
I’m hoping the tide has finally turned, and more people will make better, more responsible luxury choices. Like I said earlier — it all matters.
Discover our current collection of sustainable leather goods →
Let’s All Be More Like Sir David Attenborough
So, this year as we celebrate one hundred remarkable years of Sir David Attenborough — and ten years of LUC8K — we are reminded that optimism is not naïve. It is powerful. Change begins when people care, and people care when they connect. Sir David created that connection for generations of us, and for that, we will always be grateful.
So here’s to a century of compassion, curiosity, standing up for the natural world, and the greatest storytelling on Earth. We celebrate him because he changed hearts — and changed hearts actually change the world.
From every human and every giraffe at LUC8K, from every conservationist, wildlife lover, supporter, dreamer, and every small child staring wide-eyed at nature for the very first time…
Thank you, Sir David.
The Earth is better because you are in it.
With love and admiration beyond words,
Denise Faye Hough
49-and-a-half-year-old Head of Human Nature and Gorilla Love, Maison De LUC8K
To discover more about what me and the team at LUC8K are creating, grab a Nzatu coffee and spend a quiet moment or two with us at www.luc8k.com.