Founded in Paris in 1948, Lonchamp is now one the one of the world’s favourite brands when it comes to buying bags. Like many other brands, success can be derived from a singular yet extremely significant item that eventually becomes synonymous with said brand. Think Hermes with its Birkin bags. For Longchamp, the Le Pliage is just that.
Join me as we dive a bit deeper into this top selling piece. The first ever Le Pliage bag was conceived by the son of Longchamp’s founder, Philippe Cassegrain. ‘Le Pliage’ actually means “folding” in French which refers to the bag’s signature fold up style, much like an envelope and was inspired by the Japanese art of origami inspired by Philippe’s travels.
The bag is as light as it is because the body of the bag is constructed from nylon canvas, leaving just the handles in leather. It’s this simple and classic design ranging in a variety of colours, styles and sizes that has led to the enormous success of the Le Pliage.
With fans including Kate Middleton, Lexa Chung and Miley Cyrus it’s no wonder that the Le Pliage is sold in more than 1000 stores worldwide.
This cult following has extended all the way to the shores of South Africa, Longchamp recently launched a classic Le Pliage dedicated to our very own city of Cape Town.
Introduced in a classic black nylon canvas with black leather details, this is a perfect piece to commemorate a trip or perhaps to show the world pride for your home town.
Either way, it feels pretty spectacular that Cape Town has quite literally made its mark on one of the most iconic bags out there.
