JET SET, 2011
SELMA, 2013
Selma bag, Michael Kors, Spring 2014.
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When Michael Kors first went to mainland China in 2014, he mounted a fashion show extravaganza in Shanghai in a thirty-thousand-square-foot airplane hangar complete with a private jet parked in the middle. The “Jet Set Experience,” attended by Hollywood celebrities, was set against large-screen projections of such beau monde destinations as Capri and St. Moritz.
A lot of designers reference travel and far-flung destinations as part of their brand identity, but no one has adopted the jet-set lifestyle quite like Kors. Everything in his world hinges on “jet set”—from that epic Shanghai outing to his blog Travel Diaries (“Ready, Jet Set, Go!”) to his ubiquitous Jet Set tote, with its slim straps and dangling logo charm.
For a company that’s predicated on an image of moneyed society and the leisure life, the price tags are on the more accessible side of the luxury spectrum. As Kors told the Times in 2014, we either are jet set “or we want to be.” And the people who want to be far outnumber those who are. For them, that elegant and clean-contoured zip-top design—flaunting textured leather, gold buckle details, and a gold logo pendant with the initials MK—becomes a projection of a lifestyle of sun-kissed mornings on the beach in Santorini, lunches in London, and nights in Saint-Tropez. “Those bags have perpetuated a deft takeover of the accessories scene; advancing from the realms of no-one’s-that-bothered to all-out ubiquity in a year,” announced the Times in 2016. The Jet Set has since given way to other popular tote styles such as the Selma (Spring 2013), with slight wings on the sides, and the boxier Mercer (Fall 2016).
Kors’s success is in democratizing luxury. His appearance on the reality television show Project Runway made him a celebrity. In 2013 the Observer named Kors one of the most influential New Yorkers of the past twenty-five years and Time included him on its list of the one hundred most influential people in the world. “Michael takes the wonderful heritage of American sportswear into the future,” designer Zac Posen told Time that year, “translating it internationally for every woman and man who wants to be a part of the American Dream.”
“The idea of design integrity and quality isn’t based strictly on the idea of a high price tag. That’s disappeared, that’s old fashioned.”
—MICHAEL KORS, South China Morning Post, May 16, 2014
SOCIAL SWAN
AIMEE SONG
Aimee Song with a Céline Box bag, Paris, 2014.
Kirstin Sinclair/Getty Images
Los Angeles native Aimee Song is the powerhouse blogger behind Song of Style. In 2016, she was named one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30; that same year, she published her first book, Capture Your Style: Transform Your Instagram Photos, Showcase Your Life, and Build the Ultimate Platform. She’s partnered with numerous labels and is consistently named on the industry’s lists of top fashion influencers. Here she opens up about handbag loves, past and present.
What was your first handbag?
I discovered luxury handbags when I was around eleven. That’s when I saw my first Chanel bag—at the boutique on Rodeo Drive. I was with my mom, and a small quilted bag caught my eye. I wasn’t as into fashion as I am now, but I remember recognizing instantly that was a pretty bag. My mom bought it—not for me, but for herself—but because it was a mini, she would let me carry it.
Where is the bag now?
I don’t know. I lost it and all the contents inside one day in San Francisco. It was so cold that I must’ve been distracted because when the leather strap broke, I didn’t notice. It was really old by that point—but it had been so durable for ten years. So I understand why people invest in luxury bags.
Do you rotate bags?
I carry the same bag a lot. The main reason is because, when I’m investing in a bag, I want to make sure it goes with a lot of things. When you’re making an investment, whether it’s $200 or $2,000, you want to make sure you’re getting your money’s worth. I love carrying a bag over and over again and wearing it different ways. Also, I’m lazy—I don’t want to take the contents out of the bag.
Luxury bags are…
Better investments than stocks! For someone like me, who’s not wealthy, buying a luxury bag is a peek into the design world. You can’t wear a couture piece that often, but you can wear a bag many times. Buying a designer’s bag makes you feel like you’re part of the brand. You still feel like you got something.
What bags are you loving right now?
I’m obsessed with the Petite Malle from Nicolas Ghesquière for Louis Vuitton. I think Nicolas is a genius. He brought a freshness and a coolness to Vuitton while still keeping the integrity of the heritage of the brand. I also love Gucci and Chloé.
HANDBAGS TO REMEMBER
ANDREA LINETT
Andrea Linett with a Louis Vuitton Speedy, New York City, 2014.
Michael Waring
Crevative director and brand consultant Andrea Linett began her career at the indie teen magazine Sassy before going on to Harper’s Bazaar and Lucky, where she served as founding creative director. She has also worked as eBay’s first creative director, helping to build its fashion presence, and as Michael Kors’s VP global creative director. In 2014 Fast Company added her to its list of “Most Creative People in Business 1000.” Linett is the founder of the personal style blog iwanttobeher.com, which spun off a similarly titled memoir in 2012. She is also the author of the style guide The Cool Factor (2016) and the coauthor of The Lucky Shopping Manual: Building and Improving Your Wardrobe Piece by Piece (2003) and The Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style: How to Wear Iconic Looks and Make Them Your Own (2008). Here she shares memories and shopping tips.
What was the first bag you fell in love with?
I seem to remember my mom’s cool white mod bag in the late 1960s that has to have been the style inspiration for that first Marc Jacobs It Bag in the late 1990s.
How do you keep things organized in your bag?
I put smaller things in the inside zipper pocket and my Matthew Swope clutch and then everything else falls into the black hole.
What is one thing about handbags that only a true handbag lover would understand?
They have the power to change your look and attitude like nothing else.
When shopping for a bag . . .
Look for a good inside pocket and good or no hardware. Bad hardware can ruin a perfectly great bag.
Describe one moment of handbag envy.
I saw a super cool—I’m guessing French—girl walking around Soho. She had messy hair and was in all black and was carrying a perfectly beat-up old brown Kelly bag that I decided had been her grandma’s and she was rocking it her way. I think about that girl/bag a lot!
If you could save one bag in your wardrobe from a fire . . .
My mom’s old dark brown saddlebag from the 1960s. So cool and irreplaceable.