The British are coming. After 109 years, the legendary luggage maker Globe-Trotter is finally making landfall in the United States.
The company, featuring handmade lines and which sells approximately $2.48 million worth of luggage a year, only produces about 215 to 300 pieces a week and still uses the same Victorian machinery it did when it was founded in 1897.
The cases are covered in a patented Vulcan Fibre, made from 14 layers of paper and treated in such a way that it reaches its maximum durability in 10 years, and are trimmed with leather. The collections include Orient, a lacquered suitcase lined in Thai silk, and Cruise, a contrasting royal blue and navy leather case lined in pinstripes.
Over the years, a variety of British icons have been Globe-Trotter customers, including Sir Edmund Hillary, who used the luggage at his first base camp during his 1951 Mount Everest conquest; Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Diana, and Kate Moss. Globe-Trotter is also making its way onto the silver screen in the upcoming remake of the James Bond film “Casino Royale” as 007’s luggage of choice.
“It happened through a chance meeting in Japan at Turnbull & Asser [Bond’s shirt brand],” explained Globe-Trotter brand manager Gary Bott. “Their New York store manager was about to fly to the Bahamas to fit [Bond portrayer] Daniel Craig, and I approached him to suggest they consider our brand. I thought it would be an ideal fit to give 007 our old-fashioned style tricked out with lasers and knives, and once you’re in one [Bond movie], you are in for the duration.”
In the U.S., the brand will be sold at Barneys New York, Moss and The Conran Shop. Along with its regular collection, which wholesales from $480 to $3,950, Barneys will exclusively feature the Union Jack (U.S. Edition) case designed to commemorate the American launch. The Union Jack is a red, white and blue case, retailing for $2,020, that comes with a set of iconographic travel stickers to personally customize each piece.
“For the first two seasons, we are looking to establish Globe-Trotter on the East Coast, specifically New York, because of the city’s trans-Atlantic synergy and the fact it is a popular U.S. destination,” explained Bott. “We see a great potential in the U.S. From New York we will look further to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas and Chicago.” The firm hopes to sell just under $1 million worth of luggage in its first year in the U.S.
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Globe-Trotter is not only looking to expand to the U.S. market, but is also moving into Asia. It already has a strong presence in Japan and is pushing into Hong Kong and Korea.
Bott said they also are possibly looking toward Singapore, Taiwan and China along with Russia, Australia and the Middle East.
When asked where he sees the collection in the future, Bott said, “We don’t want to mass produce and lose the essence of who we are. We’ve been around for 109 years, and we want to be around 109 more.”