The background of the SATCHEL

During the summer I snatched a mint bag stylized as a schoolbag that was on sale at the accessories shop SIX. I am literally in love with it and keep wearing it as often as possible, even at times when it does not match my clothes. Later I kept noticing the bag was also in other stores (Bershka, Tesco´s F&F, C&A) in many colours and various sizes. It made me think about the origins of the bag and of the fact - why it is in every other store now. What kind of a trend is that?

Well what I found is that the origins really are in the schoolbag. The designer remembered them from her childhood and recreated them to suit modern taste, therefore the bright colours. The right English term for the bag is a "satchel" and it is produced by a British company called Cambridge Satchel Company that was founded in 2008 by Julie Deane and her mother Freda Thomas. The creators of this bag and of the whole trend say that they started as a small business based at home but it soon became a big firm that is earning big money.

The bag by Cambridge Satchel Company has, as you can notice on the photo, one big pocket at the front with a little space for name/class/address, I guess. The bag is also made from leather and is usually in bright colours. The designer of the bas says she was surprised by the success and that she thought the bags would be popular with children, not 20-year-old folks. You can read an interview on this site (with a very funny but quite fitting name).

I also found an information that the Company started some disputes on intellectual property copyright infringement. Well I am not surprised, the bags are everywhere. On the other hand, I am not sure how this works in case other companies selling those do not use the brand´s name and are not producing fakes of the other brand but "their" bags.

 

PS: Did you know the bag is considered to be one of the affordable IT bags?

 

PPS: Did you know this is such a kickass bag that even Vivienne Westwood designed her own line for the Cambridge Satchel Company? I just love the red and white colour combination.