Hot off the presses is this bit of news of a new bag design coming out from Coach, scheduled to be released in Fall. What this means for us here in this season-less country, is that we should expect to see this one pop up in stores from Oct/Nov 2013. It is a new design and a new addition to Coach’s permanent range.
They call it – The Borough.
I actually thought “The Borough” sounded very English, which is quite removed from Coach’s cosmopolitan, American vibe. Unlike some of the frills and flounces we’ve been seeing (The new designs now sport a very large tassel) The Borough looks almost… plain.
And yet, it is the plainness that drew me to it. I liked the sleek, clean lines, the quiet understated elegance, the city chic and the tiny logo. With The Borough, you wear the bag – the bag and brand doesn’t wear you. And I like that!
The Borough presently comes in 2 designs – East-West (horizontal) and North-South (vertical) and are quite genderless. I hate using the word unisex, so genderless will do just fine. As you can see from the photo above, in brown (or black) the large Borough tote could quite easily fit in the hands of a man, as well as the teal fits on the shoulders of a woman.
The East-West Borough comes in 3 sizes – Small, Medium and Large.
This hot pink number is a seasonal colour, and is the mini size and I can quite honestly tell you that it’s very cute. As the name implies, it’s small but it is quite roomy and comes with a detachable strap so it’s one of those fun numbers you can sling around as you traipse about the city on a weekend.
Here’s an example of how it’d look worn. This was on a mannequin which is about 5′ 5″ so you can imagine that it is quite small.
I thought the Medium sized Borough was better for daily wear. The large one actually looks too much like a briefcase. I was very taken with this teal number which was on display. The colour in person is much more vibrant than I managed to capture in the poor lighting. The leather for this one is a smooth calf leather, while I saw some others in a slightly more rough, soft leather.
What this design reminds me of is the Prada Saffiano Double Zip tote which is very popular. This Coach Borough has 3 zip compartments together with some open spaces in between, so you could actually fit a lot in there. 2 touches I liked were rolled handles and metal zips – I hold no credence with bags that don’t use metal zips.
It isn’t too heavy empty, which is of course, a good thing. When a bag starts out heavy while empty, you can just expect your arms to fall off when you have the most basic of items in there. This one doesn’t. The Coach logo is tiny and understated and I LOVE THAT! 😀
I think this is a lovely piece and a very modern yet classic design that we can expect to see more off in the coming seasons. It’ll be suitable to carry to work and it’s just as suitable toting about for fun. The small one is really cute so I think that one will be quite popular.
I haven’t been paying a lot of attention to Coach recently because the new designs haven’t quite lured me in, but The Borough does have me keeping an eye on it. Is it a design you might like too?
Coach Fall and Holiday collections 2013
While we’re at it, here are some pictures of what we can expect from Coach in Fall and for the Holiday season. My eye was immediately drawn to these colourful foldover leather clutches.
They are quite large and I like the versatility and clean lines. If clean lines isn’t your thing, then Coach has the studded large clutch which looks quite worn and edgy.
While I like the burnished look of the studds and clasp, I was not feeling the wristlet strap not the tassle AND leather tag. Almost too much going on.
Croc Coach? Well, not quite. These are leather embossed with the crocodile skin effect and there are a range of them in the Madison collection. See, that Madison Croc Embossed Drawstring bag? I told you drawstring backs were back in fashion 😉 Croc like this isn’t quite me, plus I find brown very dating. I personally go for bright colored bags and accessories so browns and blacks have no say in my wardrobe unless they are very classic or very unique.
Interestingly, we will soon be getting in more Coach accessories, other than the bags. Coach is now evolving into more of a lifestyle, more well-rounded brand, rather than just churning out season after season of different bag designs. The whole (what seemed like) monthly new collections really turned me off the brand so much I refused to even look at them until they released their Legacy range, which is essentially their Back-to-basics range.
So soon, we will see their shoes, and even clothes in our local stores, starting with the flagship store at Pavilion KL. Yes, Coach leather jackets and knitwear too, since it will be Fall/Winter soon. Interesting. By way of example, here is one of the new shoe designs to expect – the lock buckle. Not quite my taste, but the colour it comes in are very unique. Maybe it is yours 🙂
Oh, and they are also boosting up the men’s range which I am particularly happy about, because I happen to have a soft spot for Coach’s men’s bags! Their designs are sleek, simple and classic – just how I like my bags. Also, I’ve been eyeing one of their men’s messenger bags/satchels for ages!
So there we have it. Our first peek at the brand new and upcoming Coach Borough bag which they hope will take the world by storm (although I expect to see mostly working women toting it as a very work-friendly tote) and a sampler of what Fall and Holiday 2013 has to offer us.
Does The Borough bag catch your fancy? Are you a fan of Coach?
I can’t say I’m a huge fan, but one of my first better quality leather bags was a Coach Legacy Hobo in red which you see here and which now resides with my SIL, followed by a Coach Legacy Cross body bag in bright yellow which I still carry. Both have no sign on it that it’s a Coach except the hang tag. Just how I like it 🙂 I got both online a long time ago. Their canvas and logo range have always boggled my mind but I think their leather ranges have a lot to offer. They are fairly affordable (one word – SALES! Another word – overseas! 😉 ) and their leather is very lovely for the price. I am keeping an eye out for The Borough bag. I don’t have the prices yet but expect it to range from just about RM1000 for the mini to RM3000 for the large ones.
Paris B
Coach The Borough and Fall and Holiday 2013 will be available at Coach stores from Oct/Nov 2013. Prices to be advised
You know, I’ve never been into Coach bags for some reason. I kind of think of them as young for some reason and they just never appealed to me. But I like the studs! And I don’t mind the brown croc bag either. Brown purses kind of fit my causal life-sometimes black can look too dressy for me.
It’s funny Tracy because that’s exactly how I feel about it. I notice that overseas especially in the US where I think it’s very common, it is targeted at the young and the young girls carry it more than older women. Over here, perhaps because of the pricing, it’s carried a lot by working women in their 20-30s. I mentioned this to the people from Coach who told me my observation was quite accurate but they are trying to dispell that, hence the new lines 🙂
I quite like the design of the prada, I thought I might’ve found a cheaper dupe through Zara but didn’t like the touch of the faux leather. loving the double zip compartment on these! the teal is definitely dragging my heart.
I’m very anti-faux leather which is essentially plastic, Shamim. I find it never wears well and it ages horribly! So, better to just save up for a good leather piece – doesn’t have to be designer to be good leather 🙂 But if you like the design of the Prada then you may like the Borough 🙂 It’s got one up on the Prada, it’s got 3 zips! LOL
I do not like coach. Fullstop. Really. But, never say no. I do like the Medium sized Borough. I like it that the label is discreet. It looks more ‘classy’ this way. And i really like the color of those blue pumps. It looks sharp.
I was very turned off Coach when I saw their logos and canvas bags everywhere. Also, they went through a spell when the designs were atrocious and so childish. It was very offputting because their leather goods are lovely. Designs less so. But still, it’s interesting to see how the Borough holds up. It’s very different from the rest of the Coach designs. Clean and unfussy. Oh the blue is even brighter in person! We don’t see many blue shoes around do we?
Ahh! I love the bright red with the black handles! So much love – but so much ouch in the back pocket >.<! And calf skin leather?! *faints* So much to love about this! I'm not usually a Coach fan but this is something else!
Darn my camera, Sam Bear, its a bright pink actually hehe… But it’s very cute due to the size. If it were any bigger it wouldn’t be half as cute but I do like the simplicity too!
Erm. . . My heart didn’t pound looking at the photos of the bags. . . Plain was the first word that came to mind. I didn’t like the brown ones, though the black one looks good! Kind of androgynous looking. I also don’t like these kind of zippers if the opening is narrow because they scratch my hand whenever I put my hand into my bag. Almost like putting my hand into a crocodile’s mouth 😛
Yep, they are very plain. Very work/office friendly but I appreciated how different they are from the regular Coach line which I find a little over over if you get my meaning 😉 But you made me laugh at putting your hand into a crocodile’s mouth – now how will you know eh? 😉
I also like my bag to not have its logo spelled out big and ‘very out there’. Discreet is the way to go. And if people can’t guess what brand it is, even better! haha.. I’m weird like that.
Sorry to go off topic but when I looked at the pic of the mannequin, I’m drawn to the shoes worn by the lady on the right. It’s shiny and very metallic, wow!Any idea where i can get a pair?
Not weird DJ, I’m the same. Not fussed about people knowing where my bags are from so I go for more discreet pieces & material 😉 I’m afraid I don’t know where she got the shoes from, sorry!
The Borough looks very auntie… reminds me every single bit of Margaret Thatcher’s bag… ouch and sorry! :p
The studs are interesting, on the other hand. 🙂
AHAHA! yes it’s not very exciting and not very young. But it’s ok la. I’m an auntie 😀
Aiyoh… me also auntie for so long… In the lift (with strangers), people are calling me “p” now, as in older sister… 🙁 :(… in a few years I will hear myself addressed as “pa” (for auntie, normally older than your own mother)… waaaaaaaaaa 🙁
Hahaha I resisted Auntie for so long… now don’t call me ah soh, I’m happy 😛
Gorgeous!! I am liking the studded clutch too.
It does look pretty eh? Watch out in stores in Nov 🙂
You say that you think “the borough” is removed from Coach’s cosmopolitan, American vibe. A “borough” is actually one of the five administrative divisions of New York City (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, and Staten Island), and since Coach is a New York based company, it’s very fitting.
I am a Coach fan..I have over 20 bags from various collections…and adding 🙂 I do plan to purchase the chic Borough (the bag Karlie Kloss was spotted with) as soon as it hits the stores! I am hoping it comes in blue!