Handbag Designer 101: The Stories Behind Handbag Designers, Brands, and Industry Icons

Story Over Specs: Wale Sanni on Founder-Led Luxury and Hero Bags | Emily Blumenthal & Wale Sanni

• Emily Blumenthal • Season 1

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What if the material doesn’t matter as much as the meaning? We go deep on the power of story to outsell specs, exploring why a polarizing point of view can create die-hard loyalty and how luxury falters the moment it tries to scale. With Wale Sanni—millennial product specialist with a razor-sharp lens—we break down founder-led allure, pricing psychology, and the difference between a bag that looks good and a brand that lives rent-free in your head.

We pull apart The Row as a live case study in anti-scale strategy, then map how Gen Z gravitates to human-led labels where the founder’s life becomes the product roadmap. Balenciaga’s City bag emerges as the blueprint for hero silhouettes that keep a house coherent across seasons. From there, we challenge assumptions about materials, pointing out why PU can top leather when the narrative resonates and how “if you’re not hateable, you’re not lovable” explains the magnetism of brands with real edges.

The conversation moves through quiet luxury, retail anthropology, and the function-versus-fantasy tightrope: novelty bags that dominate headlines but strain margins, top handles that work only when engineered for real life, and the subtle rise of coded status—insider emblems over loud logos. We spotlight Coach’s thoughtful reset, discuss indie makers trapped by underpricing, and unpack why price often scripts satisfaction before the box is opened. Along the way, we tackle resale dynamics, community-building, and what it takes to protect brand DNA while still giving culture something to talk about.

If you’re a designer, collector, or just bag-obsessed, expect sharp takes you can use: how to price with confidence, how to build a hero and iterate without dilution, and how to turn a founder’s story into a durable moat. Listen, share with a friend who argues about logos, and leave a quick review so more bag nerds can find us.

👤 Our Guest:
 Wale Sanni is a product specialist focused on luxury accessories, studying the intersection of founder-led design, pricing psychology, and consumer behavior. He advises emerging and established brands on building cohesive collections, hero products, and brand stories that resonate across generations.

Youtube: / Handbagdesigner101-ihda | Instagram:/ Handbagdesigner

TikTok: / Handbagdesigner | Twitter: / Handbagdesigner

SPEAKER_00:

All product is irrelevant. The only thing that is relevant is story. That's all you have in this world. The Bible is a collection of stories. Harry Potter is a collection of stories. Something really funny about that, that I know you would even detest this, is that the Telfar shopping bag is just the Kate Spade bag of the 90s. It's literally the exact same bag, right? But what's different is the way he proposed it as a story to a newer group of clients. So I think that's what really matters at the end of the day.

SPEAKER_01:

Hi, and welcome to Handbag Designer 101, the podcast with your host, Emily Blumenthal, handbag industry expert, and the handbag fairy godmother. Each week we uncover the stories behind the handbags we love, from the iconic brands and top designers, the creativity, craftsmanship, and culture that define the handbag world. Whether you're a designer, collector, or simply passionate about handbags, this is your front row seat to it all. Welcome, Wale Sani, Millennial Product Specialist, Extraordinaire to Handbag Designer101, the podcast. Welcome, welcome.

SPEAKER_00:

Thank you for having me. I'm excited to be here.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, when I messaged you, you're like, I follow you. And I, you know, not to sound old and giddy, I was like, ooh, that's cool. I feel famous now.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes, yes, indeed. Well, that's that's how I felt when you responded.

SPEAKER_01:

So Aw bless. So let's dive in right to it. So I'm smitten with your countdowns. When you started doing this, because obviously, as you said, it's been a minute. What drew you into thinking, like, okay, hold on. If there's anybody who's going to be an expert on handbags within the space, it's me.

SPEAKER_00:

The only reason I even came into that space is because I felt I wasn't one. And I accepted that as my fate. And as I grew, I learned from the people that followed me. I would message them and say, hey, what did you like? What did you not like? Give me the exact reasons why. And that's how I grew to be the product specialist that I am now. It's not my thoughts, it's the thoughts of people that I have worked with along the years.

SPEAKER_01:

Wow. So because I was going through, you have a lot of thoughts and a lot of opinions. So, and like how designs and brands have gone upside down and aren't following like what their true self is. Because I want to get right into this because most people that I have on, we have to be very political. There's a publicist hanging back. I can't. It's it's you know, I know, I know, I know. For anybody who's watching on YouTube, like the facial expressions we're exchanging. It's like, girl, come on. What are the brands right now that you think are being truly authentic to their customer?

SPEAKER_00:

That is a fantastic question. And I want to answer it with the shining obvious answer is the row. I think what they're doing is a case study of how luxury isn't scalable.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

It is not scaled. And the moment you try to scale it is when you ruin everyone who is actually a very valuable client to the product that you're selling. So in recent years, the row is trying to figure out how do we eliminate people to our brand as fast as possible.

SPEAKER_01:

That are not worthy of buying us.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes, that are not aligned to our mission statement. I don't know if you've seen recently, but the number one client of the row recently published this letter where she's saying, you know, I feel like the row isn't me anymore. They've taken it to a direction that I wasn't a fan of. And the role's response is that's great. We have other people in line.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, like don't buy us. Bye.

SPEAKER_00:

There's Kate down the street. Please go check that out.

SPEAKER_01:

Kate's good. It's good. Yeah, it's funny because once you hear the Margot bag crossing over, like I was listening to a snarky podcast, and the podcaster was saying who's gay, and he's like, I need to get my daughter, who was eight, a mini Marg bag. And I'm like, oh my gosh, we've really gone there. Do you think though that perhaps part of the Rose success is the fact that they are not so much a heritage brand and therefore there isn't so much of their product flooded on the circular market? Like, I think there's got to be a connection to that because less have been produced over the years.

SPEAKER_00:

The real correlation between their success is actually what makes Gen Z so interested in the row, is that it's it's a founder-led brand.

unknown:

Yep.

SPEAKER_00:

So essentially to Gen Z, it's being positioned to them the same way that they would see uh the way Kate Spade was too. What Kate Spade was to, you know, millennial.

SPEAKER_01:

Yep.

SPEAKER_00:

To my to my group of people. But they see it the same way Haley Bieber sees Rhode and the same way they see the founder. And with the founder's life story being aligned to the way that they see luxury with archival, with the cates being so historic in that sense, it gives them the opportunity to feel like they are them when they buy the product.

SPEAKER_01:

So, yes. Okay, so next, I feel like we're gonna be doing the ABCs here. So Balanciaga, Balanciaga is probably one of my most favorite brands to talk about only because of the motorcycle slash city bag. And to me, that's a case study of how to understand a hero bag, understand what you know is the bag and a product that you know your customer really resonates with, and how to maximize on it on a familial level, right? Like the iterations, it's a big and a little, it's a mini, everything still has like it all carries that same likeness. You can all tell they're related. None of the product that they put out is a bastard of that child within that family. Like they all look alike. Now, the hate that happened for Balenciaga, primarily, I feel like came from people who still can't pronounce it, right? Like, let's call it what it is. Because, you know, people are like, oh, I don't like it. Balenciaga, blah, blah, blah. People still want it. Do you feel like that the changing of the guard really mattered to its future success? Or at the end of the day, they still make good bags. Nobody cares.

SPEAKER_00:

I think there's two points to that. I think if if someone has the ability to hate you, you might find your husband or wife. So, I mean, that's the testament to having a point of view.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh my god. I'm glad no one's eye almost spit on my screen. That's amazing.

SPEAKER_00:

If you're not hateable, you're not lovable. So I think in the midst of a lot of brands today, they're trying to be likable. And because of that, they don't find a product or something that they can position and say, this is what we are, this is what we stand for, and this is why you should invest with us. And if you don't, that's okay. And I think the city bag is Balenciaga's bag where it's like, this is what Balenciaga is to the T. If you work with Balenciaga from now on to the future, you have to have an iteration that you want to deploy to customers as your version of the city bag.

SPEAKER_01:

Do you think customers who are more brand driven, in my opinion, perhaps know less about the product, but more obsessed with the brand, the label, the show, like aren't even aware that so many of the bags aren't even made with real leather. It's mostly PU. Do you think the customer cares as much about what the product is made of?

SPEAKER_00:

I don't think they should if they don't. And that's a very important thing that I think a lot of people from different sides of fashion industry struggle to grasp with is that what is valuable to you don't get to decide what's valuable to the client. Right. And a lot of times, like for many, for example, people see my page and they're like, what is some six foot two Nigerian guy is gonna tell me about handbags? And I'm like, perfect. That's great.

SPEAKER_01:

So much, so much.

SPEAKER_00:

So stick around. Stick around. There's people who follow me that don't want to follow me. I understand.

SPEAKER_01:

If you were if you were five foot two, nothing, but six foot two, I'm here for it. I'm here for it. That to the mood. To the mood. I want to talk about your top fives. How do you determine? Because there's such an overwhelming amount of content. How do you decide like your recent top fives? How do you decide, like, okay, what's relevant? Like, what's your recent top fives about? And how do you figure that out?

SPEAKER_00:

What I decide is what's relevant is that I'm so in tune to who I am that the people who follow me are essentially versions of me. So I know in their brain, it's like stranger things. Like I'm already fecina their screw it around. And that's what the great thing about building a brand is that everything you say is already coming from the point of view of people who are already you, hence why they're following you. So the top fives are so easy.

SPEAKER_01:

So, what was your most recent top five?

SPEAKER_00:

Most recent top five, I think, was a series of top three affordable.

SPEAKER_01:

Right.

SPEAKER_00:

Top three affordable, quiet luxury brands that will command respect. And I worded it in a way specifically, so it wouldn't be brands that you don't know about, brands that you could know about, or you don't know about, or you do know about that if you wore, people would stop you on the street and say, Hey, what is that bag?

SPEAKER_01:

Right. Like I think the first one was horse.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, clementine. Yep.

SPEAKER_01:

Yep, yep, clementine. Right, exactly. Because I was going through it and that's the one that pulled me in. And I'm like, mm-hmm, mm-hmm. I agree. I agree. I agree. Do you think because I was recently, I like to, I call it retail anthropology. It's a favorite word of mine. There is a guy called Paco Underhill, who is a retail anthropologist who came up with that construct of talking about the why and how we shop, like what goes into all of that. And I was looking at the little bags, the little French, the French designer who makes the little itty bitty bags. I'm mortified, I can't remember right now.

SPEAKER_00:

Chakmoose.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes, yes, yes, yes. And I was looking at, I was talking to the guy who was there. He also makes teddy bears there that are like$250, by the way, upstairs. Very lovely guy. And I was looking at his mini, I think it's the Besso bag, the mini bag, and it looked so much like the Louire bag. It's the same top handle. So much of that is so similar. Do you think, like, if someone's gonna capitalize on a trend, the overlap of the similarity between the customer, the product, the color. What is your take on all that?

SPEAKER_00:

My take is all product is irrelevant. The only thing that is relevant is story. That's all you have in this world. The Bible is a collection of stories. Harry Potter is a collection of stories. Something really funny about that, that I know you would even detest this, is that the Telfar shopping bag is just the Kate Spade bag of the 90s. It's literally the exact same bag, right? But what's different is the way he proposed it as a story to a newer group of clients. So I think that's what really matters at the end of the day.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm excited to share my new book with you. Welcome to Savvy Susanna's Amazing Adventures in Handbags and the start of Susanna's triumphant journey to become a young handbag designer. Filled with ingenuity, fun, and a hint of steam, Susanna will inspire children and you everywhere to follow their dreams and put in the hard work to get there. Savvy Susanna is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or wherever you get your books. Thanks for your support. Well, Telfar, much like Randon Blackwood, much like so many people, had been around for really, really long time, 10 plus years, and had an opportunity to capitalize on a tipping point moment. And I think Telfar is like people should study him, should study what he's done, should study his marketing. I think the way he's done it is probably better than anybody known to mankind, truly. Like when he took over the Rainbow Shop in Brooklyn under the train, like I was just watching that live. Like I was not there, but I was watching. And the thing about that Telfar bag is it is extremely uncomfortable. Structurally, it's not good. The crossbody strap is ergonomically incorrect. It is not a comfortable bag. People walk with that bag and it flops on them. Like there was whatever test drive was there, it's like nobody cared because of the story and how the bag was presented. And anybody I've seen them, I'm like, you know, you can make that strap shorter. You know, it doesn't need to hang so low on your body. It doesn't need to whack you every time you walk. But because those bags aren't even made with real leather, those are bags are PU.

unknown:

Right.

SPEAKER_01:

But the story and the how and the who, it's just, it's really, really good. Do you believe that certain designers within that space perhaps have gotten too big for themselves within their story?

SPEAKER_00:

I think they forget their story. So I think if that's the proposition that we're making there, I think they do. But the good thing about forgetting your story is that you could then remember it in a different way than you lived it. Yeah, uh, it's imagine if Carrie Brasshaw could do the same.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, if you rewatch Sex in the City, Carrie was a horrible person.

SPEAKER_00:

But that's the people who watched it fully.

SPEAKER_01:

Right, right, right, right. I now re-watch it for everybody else. I'm like, why are you so mean to Samantha? She was your friend. She is literally your only real true friend. And you're mean to her. I don't know. Certain friendships. I would have gotten on that text chain like quick.

SPEAKER_00:

Growing up is realizing Charlotte shouldn't have gave her the check. That's that's when you oh that's that's when you grow up.

SPEAKER_01:

This is so many nuggets of good stuff. I yeah, I agree. You don't deserve the check.

SPEAKER_00:

You don't deserve the check.

SPEAKER_01:

You don't deserve the check. Live smaller. Jesus Christ. Oh my gosh. Wally, this is there's so much. I want to talk to you a little bit about the and I'm sure this is boring. Well, not to us, but in terms of trends you're seeing coming out, because I deal with I deal with people from WGSN, I deal with people from industry, but people like essentially you and I are of the streets. We hear the whispers, we see what people are talking. What are the things that people are saying that you think? Because there's a lot of tangible connections between silhouettes and color, right? Like if there's a lot of color coming out that's bright and pop, it usually means the market is bound to be doing well. If there's more muted, more structure, that means people are theoretically tightening their purse strings. They want things in order. You know, like the bigger the hobo, the better the market because there's lack of organization. It's big, it's oversized. That's how people are living. What are you seeing going on that you think other people aren't?

SPEAKER_00:

What I see going on is there's gonna be a very big rise in this conservative way of dressing. And it's already kind of taking it into toll with quiet luxury, but I think it's gonna take a step further with the idea that if everything can be purchased on the resale market that is oysterous of a brand, we're going to buy things that can't be identified by the secondhand market as someone inflating themselves into that culture of zeitgeist, if that makes any sense.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, it totally does.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. So a lot of, I think really, really, really wealthy people will start to wear couture or something that is customized to that group of people. So for example, masters golf gear. I think that's gonna take a huge rise, especially with quarter zips kind of coming into play, identifying who you are by that quarter zip and by that emblem, things like that.

SPEAKER_01:

So do you think that's gonna have an impact on logos? Because much like denim, where people will say wide leg, high rise, low rise, you can basically buy anything anywhere, and nothing really matters other than skinny jeans for men are out, which I've tried to resell, which is another story. I'll talk to you about that after. But in terms of logos, people say big logos are in, small logos, understated, overstated. Everything goes, but we all know what's the real deal. What do you think?

SPEAKER_00:

As I said previously, I think what's in and will always be in is having an opinion. Because now we have the ability to tap into so many different markets at one time. Before it was, hey, retailers told you what was in, and they partnered with celebrities, and those celebrities partnered with runway shows to tell you what was going on. Now there's so many niche groups of people that if you're not tapped into yourself, you're not going to find your niche and you're just gonna be sitting here in La La Land.

SPEAKER_01:

Yep. You know, it's all about community.

SPEAKER_00:

It's all about community.

SPEAKER_01:

Without having a community, you have nobody. And I think, you know, if 80% of the business is controlled by 20% of your customer, I feel like, and also customer acquisition costs are so high. What I teach my students is think of how much you can do without spending money on advertising, because you have to be clever, you have to be out of the box, you have to be Blair Witch about this. You know, you have to have the street and the hustle. I'm like, what is my unique selling point to doing something to an existing silhouette that hasn't been done? Right. And I think I agree with you that because the circular market is so popular and people are so comfortable buying something on Depop before they shop at retail, that you better make sure that whatever you're creating has some solid DNA in order to make sure you stand out. Do you follow independent designers? I hate the word emerging. It's a no-no for me. I don't like that because independent designers are designers that are not essentially commercially known. Emerging makes it sound like a like a training bra. Like you nobody needs to be. Like once you've created, you put out a bag, you've sold it, like you're a brand, the end. What kind of brand is always up for discussion. I I follow independent designers, obviously. That's what I do, but also there's usually a life cycle in terms of knowing how to deliver on time and knowing how to price, because pricing is always a challenge, as I'm sure you've seen that. A lot of smaller brands walk in saying I'm luxury. And it's like you're not luxury, your bag is overpriced because you don't know how to price your product correctly. So you can make a profit. What are some brands that you think that you're watching that you think, okay, I think I gotta, I gotta see what's gonna happen?

SPEAKER_00:

Brands that I think that about. I, you know, interesting you say that because emerging is such a vast category. A brand that I'm actually watching that I think has the ability to truly scale is coach. I know that sounds really super crazy.

SPEAKER_01:

It does not.

SPEAKER_00:

And it does not, right?

SPEAKER_01:

No.

SPEAKER_00:

Coach is the antithesis of what remembering your story is about. Going back to why you started in the first place. Because once again, we all know coach had the outlets, people felt the ick about coach, it was had this era of Just not knowing where it was and retelling their story allowed them to become a much more valuable brand in 2025 than they were in 2016.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, I was I had a cell phone call with the president uh while he was on his way, and he was saying that they are so tapped in to their 17-year-old customer because she is typically a junior in high school. She is still solidifying, she still is an influencer in her own right, which is part of the reason why they added coffee into their outlets because it increases the shopping, it increases them keeping them in the stores. So everything they're doing is so laser focused on who their customer is. But I don't believe that customer really gives a shit about the husband and wife who started that and that it was made out of a baseball mitt. Because the pre-Sara Lee bags, you will still find at any vintage show because those bags still like with the with the piping and the same twist lock and the same very long crossbody strap, or those very, very like masculine, very heavy computer bags, or you know, I I don't know if those speak to the customer, but I feel like they have so much that they can work with.

SPEAKER_00:

True, true. But the reason I say that they're on the up is because they've decided they don't get to control the story that the person who buys a bag tells their friends. Instead, they get to control the narrative of what they present to the world, and they can choose from that point. So once you get a coach bag, you'll be like, man, this is actually like pretty good quality for the price I paid. Blah blah blah blah. But you don't need to know the origin story of coach because that isn't why you bought a bag in the first place. I mean, that's sure it'd be interesting for us to know, right? For for us is the in. But like I was telling one of my friends the other day, 99% of people who go to basketball games do not know more than the person that's on the basketball court. But they support the industry that allows it to exist.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm into it. Are there other any other brands that you have your eye on?

SPEAKER_00:

Another brand that I have. Hmm. A brand that I think in the and I don't because I don't necessarily look at brands that are up and coming simply for the fact that it may cloud my judgment on why I think this brand would be valuable to the people that follow me. So I would say a brand that's already established that has the opportunity to turn to another level, will they? That's a whole nother discussion for another day. Right? It's it's a difficult thing to do. I think Saint Laurent.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, you're you're talking big brands.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm talking big brands. We're talking big.

SPEAKER_01:

You're talking big brands.

SPEAKER_00:

Big brands. But I I think they have the ability to really rediscover themselves post this I don't know, with the new creator director and the way he's really recalibrating the point of view from Saint Laurent, I think they have the ability to take that next step, especially for curing with their whole restructuring thing going on.

SPEAKER_01:

So do you think customers now, because there's been so much change, like we we were talking about how Gen Z is so like screaming from the rooftops, like sustainability, all of that. But the reality is like they are she and up. Do you think this is a smoke and mirror thing? Like, do you think people still care about who is making their product? Like if it's women made, if it's black owned, if it's Latin owned, do you think, or is that because at the end of the day, you gotta make a nice product, right? It's the product and the price that's gonna draw you in. It's the story that's what's gonna keep you there. Because you still have to say, like, does this work for me? Like, will this does this connect with me? Do you think people care as much?

SPEAKER_00:

I think we should listen to what people there's a quote. Never listen to what people say, but just just see what they do. Right. And I think so so many times a lot of designers, founders, they listen to too much of the chance of the crowd and not the people who are actually the decision makers of what they want to do. So for example, there was a time where I used to listen to people and they were like, hey, talk about the like top three most sustainable brands that aren't using like leather. And I'm like, yeah, totally. And like, and I say this brand, they're like, I'm not paying$200 for a bag. I was like, all right, well, this category can't grow if people believe that it's not valuable. So I think a lot of the times founders need to market towards people who are willing to make the change. And I think that's a different approach than being a woman-led founder or being a black-owned business. Yeah. People who are inviting change into their life. And then they'll they'll be willing to pay whatever price point you can justify.

SPEAKER_01:

If you ever wanted to start a handbag brand and didn't know where to start, this is for you. If you had dreams of becoming a handbag designer but aren't trained in design, this is for you. If you have a handbag brand and need strategy and direction, this is for you. I'm Emily Blumenthal, handbag designer expert and handbag fairy godmother, and this is the handbag designer 101 masterclass. Over the next 10 classes, I will break down everything you need to know to make, manufacture, and market a handbag brand. Broken down to ensure that you will not only skip steps in the handbag building process, but also to save money to avoid the learning curve of costly mistakes. For the past 20 years, I've been teaching at the top fashion universities in New York City, wrote the handbag designer Bible, founded the handbag awards, and created the only handbag designer podcast. I'm going to show you like I have countless brands to create in this in-depth course from sketch to sample to sale. Whether you're just starting out and don't even know where to start or begin, or if you had a brand and need some strategic direction, the handbag designer 101 Masterclass is just for you. So let's get started, and you'll be the creator of the next it bag. Join me, Emily Blumenthal, in the Handbag Designer 101 Masterclass. So be sure to sign up at Emily Blumenthal.com slash masterclass and type in the code INCAST to get 10% off your masterclass today. I feel like those things, women-owned, I feel like all of those are much more because there's such insane need to pump out content, right? Like you can almost pinpoint it from holiday season to whatever month that's going. That okay, so this month we're gonna get the top 10 designers from this, or these are the top 10 sustainable designers, but these are all things that media needs. I don't so much believe the customer cares as much, especially for the people we speak about.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. And ultimately, the liars need speed, the truth will always remain constant.

SPEAKER_01:

God, you're like, you should rename your thing like handbag pastor. I'm so in, I'm not even joking.

SPEAKER_00:

Like but truly, if you are a liar, it's very it's imperative that you tell your lie really, really fast, right? So if you believe that this brand is only valuable because of this one proposition, you're going to hammer it as fast as you can.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

But if you're creating a brand that's going to be about true sustainability, you're willing to take the long road because you know the truth will always remain constant.

SPEAKER_01:

Do you believe in terms of price sensitivity of the affordable luxury brands or the quiet luxury brands you're speaking about? What do you see like the sweet spot for those particular bags would be?

SPEAKER_00:

It all depends on the founder. Your price is only a reflection of the satisfaction that you believe you can deliver your customer. So if you're pricing your product at a lower price point, customers cannot feel a higher level of satisfaction by purchasing that product because they've taken a lower amount of investment to make it happen.

SPEAKER_01:

Do you really think so?

SPEAKER_00:

I genuinely do believe that, which is why it's very important if you have something that's on sale, that they know the original price. Because that's the enjoyment that they will receive when purchasing a product that's on sale.

SPEAKER_01:

So you believe it's a transitive property that A must equal C, that what I am spending on a bag, if it's between five and seven hundred dollars, that that bag is then commensurate with the value that people see, as opposed to getting a bag that's$250, that they would not see it as as valuable or as important.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. So for example, I I think I wish someone could collect data on this. It's probably not it's not possible. The amount of Birkin bags that never see the light of day is probably 40%. That once they're purchased, they stay in that exact box in your closet and never go out to see sunlight.

SPEAKER_01:

You know, there was a Birkin fund that was just started.

SPEAKER_00:

And wouldn't surprise me, my my finance friend sent me that. And I was like, when it gets to you, that means it's time for me to to rug pull, right?

SPEAKER_01:

I just spoke to the founder. I'm gonna be having her on. I messaged her immediately. I'm like, you know, I've been talking about this for a long time. If I could have done it, I would have done it. And she's like, yep. And the story is so interesting. Like, you know, who's selling the why? Like, oh yeah, of course, a fun built on Birkins. Like, yes, it tracks, it just tracks. It's so funny.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Peanut butter plus jelly makes a good sandwich, right? But the people who buy those bags, they buy it as an opportunity to reflect to themselves that I'm worthy of purchasing this product. And that that why is a hundred thousand times more valuable than the why of purchasing a Jordan$50 bag. Because that why gives them the justification for the rest of their life of everything that they possibly could do.

SPEAKER_01:

I mean, I firmly believe, like within the partnerships that I've worked, that for me to collect a check for 50 grand on a partnership that I've done had always been 10 times easier than for me to collect a check for 500.

SPEAKER_00:

100%.

SPEAKER_01:

And I always found that to be like, why are you making me work so hard? You know, like services rendered, payment due, let's do this. And the 50 grand check, it's like, come pick it up. Okay. So I think that's an interesting take. In terms of, I'm just curious because this is like one of my things I love to talk about, top handles. Like if we're gonna talk about hand, I mean, honestly, Wally, like we're gonna be in trouble because I I keep checking the time because I'm like, let's talk about this, let's talk about that. What are your thoughts on the trend on the current top handle right now? I know this is random, but it's not for me.

SPEAKER_00:

So enlighten me on this trend because I may be I may be out of the loop here. So, what is the top handle trend here?

SPEAKER_01:

Like the top handle of a bag.

SPEAKER_00:

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01:

Like in terms of long, short, skinny, rounded, flat, the whole thing. Because all of that, a lot of times the top handle ends up becoming more ornamental.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes. Yeah, because you're you're yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

And unless you see her wearing it in the cruck of her arm, the top handle is never used because then you need to have a crossbody strap that at least it could go over your shoulder.

SPEAKER_00:

Right. So, hmm. You know what's top handle I do like though, now that we're bringing it up. Many brands use it, but it's top handle where it's like if you pull it, it stretches out. But when you let it go, it lays flat. Like okay. I don't know if you've seen I do.

SPEAKER_01:

I know what you're talking about.

SPEAKER_00:

Those I love. Those I love because it's like it's almost like a two in one. You can clutch it up if you need to. But who's wearing bags on their forearms in 2025? They need Margo bags, which is why it's one of them I could, yeah. Exactly.

SPEAKER_01:

Margot bags.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

So I know now I've seed planted and I'm I'm gonna take full ownership because I know you're gonna do a do a top three slash five on top handles.

SPEAKER_00:

Top handles, yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

And I'm now you're gonna pay attention to it.

SPEAKER_00:

I want to tag you on it as I yes, please. Well, have you seen the top handle for the new Chanel the giraffe bags and those?

SPEAKER_01:

Yep.

SPEAKER_00:

What do you what are your thoughts on those?

SPEAKER_01:

You know, it's funny because I was watching uh I think item novelty is needed now. Right. I believed post-COVID that and I'm a big handbag history person, like big. I like uh am my own self-made handbag historian because history repeats itself, it's bound to post-Spanish flu. The trends became the bags became small, they became ornate, they became sparkly, the straps were really, really long, people were wearing them on their shoulders, and then people were poor. They were dead ass poor. So it was like you got both sides, and then it became very clear that that's where we were headed. And I think every single brand you see that goes down the runway now will make sure they have at least one silhouette that's novelty. And that will be the bag that people will talk. I mean, look about the coach oversized the clutch. I forgot whatever the silhouette's name was, but you know, with the twist lock, that's lock. Oh, yeah, exactly. But everyone's gonna need that because that's the one that everyone's gonna talk about. That's the story. You will see people wearing it. I can promise you you will be seeing knockoffs of it. It might not be a giraffe, it will be a different animal. But if you type that in, it's like it was the most covered product of their entire line. So novelty brings joy. And the problem actually was many, many years ago when Betsy Johnson was acquired by Steve Madden, that Betsy Johnson's bags are novelty, right? You can still find them. They're really, really, really expensive to make. And sometimes when that happens, the price is not commensurate with the customer. So typically the brands will be breaking even when they sell them because they the bag can't be that much more expensive than the rest of the collection. Chanel can get away with doing that, but those bags are high labor, high detail. So I believe you'll see it, but I believe you'll also see it on the circular market by this time next year. For sure.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, for sure. Yeah, totally.

SPEAKER_01:

For sure. Because it came, it'll have a moment, and it it's and it went.

SPEAKER_00:

True. Which to your point and to what you're saying earlier, which is why I think it's very important to always present present yourself as valuable, because if someone finds you valuable and you presented yourself as not valuable, that's the only arena they'll allow you to exist in.

unknown:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

So I don't know if you saw this guy in New York City who makes his own handbags. He has that uh he goes and so. Is that is that the guy's name? I I don't know. He's like this black designer. Oh. And he he sells them out of this, like uh, but since he makes his own handbags, he sells them for like 200 to like 200 to like 400 max, and he's been selling out in New York City, makes his own handbags. And the thing now is like if he ever does anything that because it's labor intensive for him, I must assume, to make all these handbags, but he started off at such a price point that doesn't give him the ability to maneuver the business.

SPEAKER_01:

No, I mean, so many of these designers. I mean, uh look, I I have a section at a trade show which I want you to come visit at New York now, February 1st through 3rd, called the It Bag, where we curate and find independent designers from across the globe to sell their product. There are so many of them who don't know how to price their products correctly. So they're priced for D2C because they don't need to pay so much attention to the margins because it's this, but for them to sell it wholesale, it's a mess because they just don't get it. They're not doing it right. So someone might sell out, but are they really making money? It's all relative.

SPEAKER_00:

Right. It begs the question.

SPEAKER_01:

What is more I can't think I can't, I don't know the designer. You have to let me know.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I'll shoot you a DM of who he is. But okay it begs the question of which we talked about very early in the show, is selling luxury isn't sustainable because you need to weed people out to then truly understand your value proposition.

SPEAKER_01:

Yep. Yep, exactly. Exactly. Wally, I could hold you captive. I'm very excited we are connected because you are we're gonna be doing this. We're gonna be doing the wallet check-in.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, 100%.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, no, I'm very excited about this. I think this is great. I love finding people who are like-minded and can just talk about this. I I hope you enjoyed this because this is so my jam. I could do this, like we could keep talking for three hours and I wouldn't even notice. Like this is gonna go up and down. I'm so into it. I'm calling you past your handbag. That's it. If I'm the handbag fairy godmother, you're the pastor because you are wielding these one-liners that I think everyone should know and hear. I'm I'm here for it. How can we find you, follow you, and hear more of your great top three, top five, and everything else?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, totally. If you're younger, Gen X or older, millennial, you can find me at style by wale, s-t-y-l-e, b-y, w a l e. If you're Gen Z, don't worry, you don't need to find me. You'll find me when you get to that age. But that's where you can find me on Instagram and uh TikTok.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay. Thank you so much for joining us. We're gonna have you back for sure.

SPEAKER_00:

Can't wait.

SPEAKER_01:

Thanks for listening. Don't forget to rate and review and follow us on every single platform at handbag designer. Thanks so much. See you next time.

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Emily Blumenthal

Host