If the world of luxury is associated with dreams, Louis Vuitton is inseparable from travel. Collection after collection, the prestigious house reminds us that travel lies at the heart of its DNA. Today, Louis Vuitton is recognized across many areas of luxury - from ready-to-wear to watchmaking and jewelry - but above all it remains an exceptional leather-goods house, born from one original activity: trunk making.
Here is the story of the brand’s extraordinary journey, along with a look at some of its most iconic bags, carried for nearly a century.
Louis Vuitton and his son: the success of a family business
In 1858, Louis Vuitton created the first “steam trunk”: a trunk designed for railway travel. Until then, travel chests typically had rounded tops so rainwater could run off, but this made them difficult to stack in confined spaces. Louis Vuitton introduced a small revolution: a flat-sided trunk covered in waterproof canvas that could easily be stacked. His first trunks were covered in a gray fabric called Trianon. As the company became more successful, Vuitton experimented with new motifs: stripes appeared in 1876, and the famous Damier pattern was introduced in 1888. These hand-painted designs helped distinguish Vuitton trunks from counterfeits - a sign that the brand already had enough prestige to be copied.
By 1876, Georges Vuitton, Louis’s only son, had already been involved in the family business for several years. He invented and patented an ingenious locking system for trunks that made them extremely difficult to pick. The system is still used today. When his father died in 1892, Georges inherited a thriving company. In 1896, he gave the brand the visual identity that would become its signature: the famous Monogram. The motif became synonymous with luxury and exclusivity and helped the house distinguish itself from competitors. Georges Vuitton then expanded the brand into the United States, helping it become an international company.
A resolutely modern evolution
Louis Vuitton continued to grow throughout the eventful twentieth century. One of the most significant milestones came in 1987, when it merged with Moët Hennessy to create the LVMH group, now one of the world’s largest luxury conglomerates. Ten years later, in 1997, another transformation took place with the launch of the house’s first ready-to-wear collection. The new division was entrusted to the talented and unconventional Marc Jacobs. It was a resounding success: Louis Vuitton became a respected name in ready-to-wear as well as leather goods. In 2013, the brilliant Nicolas Ghesquière succeeded him and brought his own strong artistic vision. Both designers revitalized the brand without compromising its elegance.
They also introduced successful collaborations with artists such as Takashi Murakami, Yayoi Kusama and Jeff Koons. Each collaboration offered a fresh interpretation of the house’s emblematic bags. Together, these projects gave Louis Vuitton a distinctive attitude: its leather goods and ready-to-wear often combine a polished, upper-class aesthetic with touches of eccentricity.
The brand has continued to expand into new areas of luxury, while remaining close to its roots. It still offers a broad range of luggage, and the names of many famous bags leave little doubt about their purpose: Keepall, Carryall, Neverfull, All-In… These bags were made for adventure.
Here is an overview of some of the most iconic handbags that have been carried by women since the early twentieth century.
The Alma
At the beginning of the twentieth century, the growing fame of the luggage house attracted the attention of a true Parisian fashion icon: Gabrielle Chanel. In 1925, a bag was created especially for her. Nearly ten years later, in 1934, she authorized its production for the wider public. In 1955, it became known as the Alma and was slightly redesigned while retaining the domed shape, chic short handles and practical flat base that had appealed so much to Coco Chanel.
The Keepall
A direct descendant of the house’s luxurious luggage tradition, the Keepall was one of Louis Vuitton’s first travel bags. It appeared in 1930, at a time when lifestyles and travel habits were changing. Weekend getaways were becoming more common and car travel was increasingly widespread. Traditional trunks no longer suited these new ways of traveling, and the soft-sided Keepall represented a small revolution.
The Speedy
One of the house’s most famous bags, it was introduced in 1930 under the name Express before later becoming known as the Speedy. Adopted by generations of women and famously carried by Audrey Hepburn, the Speedy became the ultimate chic and practical handbag. It is especially popular with younger women, who embrace both the iconic Monogram and the house’s more colorful prints. Since 2006, versions of the Speedy with a shoulder strap have made the design even more practical.
Demand for Louis Vuitton bags is extraordinary, and the house has responded by offering them in a huge variety of materials, patterns and sizes.
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