LUXURY BRANDS: LOUIS VUITTON

Not many of us wake up one morning and decide we’re going to make trunks for a living but thankfully Louis Vuitton did, for where would be his iconic luggage brand?


Much imitated but never bettered the LV monogram will take you from Orient Express to the Queen Mary 2 and allow you to stand tall in any hotel lobby anywhere in the world. Nothing travels better than an LV suitcase, the logo has been around for so long it’s synonymous with luxury lifestyle choices.


The name was founded in 1837, when 16 year old Louis Vuitton began his apprenticeship with a master trunk maker in Paris at the age of 16. Seventeen years later he opened his own studio near the Place Vendome and rapidly expanded the business to a premises in Asnières just outside the city. The site is still the main workshop for Louis Vuitton products today.


The brand became popular among well-heeled travellers for the fine craftsmanship and materials but what really set Louis Vuitton apart was the now famous LV monogram and patented unpickable lock, both of which were developed by Vuitton in 1886 and both still in use. The former was designed by Vuitton in an attempt to make his products so distinctive it would foil counterfeiters who were even then trying to pass off fakes under the Vuitton name.


The company has branched out into accessories, fashion, watches and jewellery but it is still for it’s leather goods that it’s best known for. Every trunk, briefcase and handbag that comes from the Louis Vuitton leather workshop is cut and assembled by hand form the finest materials.


However, it’s not just the quality of product that has made the name endure. Louis Vuitton has managed to capture something very special: the ability to be eye-catching yet remain understated.