Gen Z, Millennial, and Gen X walk into the room, Zoomer in a tiny top and big baggy pants, Millennial in a French-style button-down with skinny jeans, Xer in a tasteful sweater and Levi's like he wore in the 80s. high-waisted denim. But they all carry the same bag slung over their shoulders. [Longchamp's Le Pliage is a recycled nylon tote bag with parallel leather handles and a snap closure flap. (Medium, small, and mini sizes are cheaper; leather and extra-large are more expensive.) Inspired by Japanese origami and named after the French word for folding, the bag was designed by Philippe Cassegrain, former president of Longchamp, to shrink to the size of a paperback book with the slightest manipulation.

Since its launch in 1993, the French luxury brand has sold more than 30 million units to buyers including Princess Kate, Jennifer Lopez, Katie Holmes, and Kendall Jenner.

“Longchamp's Le Pliage has transcended generations in a way few other bags have,” says Casey Lewis, trend analyst for youth culture newsletter After School, in an email. 'Gen Z thinks it's cool, millennials already have it in their closets, and Gen X won't stop using it because it's a staple.' Marissa Galante Frank, fashion director at Bloomingdale's, once saw “three generations of women shopping together in a store, wearing different sizes of Le Pliage, from mini pouches to large totes. [It was peace mediated between age groups fighting over fashion, waging war with adjectives like “cheating” and anecdotes like “I wore that before you were born.” Frank says that Longchamp's Le Pliage is one of Bloomingdale's best sellers, especially “a favorite for back-to-school shopping for those entering high school and college, and as a top gift each holiday season.”

And the bag has not only stood the test of time, it continues to gain momentum. According to Morgan Speed, senior editor of fashion search engine Lyst, demand for Longchamp's Le Pliage bag has increased 10% over the past three months. Frank at Bloomingdale's also confirms that sales at the traditional department store have skyrocketed: “In the last few seasons, Le Pliage mini pouches have become increasingly popular due to the East-West bag trend,” she says of the elongated micro bags.

What really stands out is how Longchamp has been able to engage Generation Z (a generation known for its ironic humor shaped by the Internet and ephemeral trend cycles that disappear almost as quickly as you can say “core”) in embracing “vintage” (31 years old) items from the past Speed attributes its popularity among young people to its surge on social media.

In particular, platforms like TikTok have seen videos of counting Le Pliage bags in high school hallways, tutorials on “Jane Birkin-filling” tote bags with bag charms, and impressive “What's in my Bag” videos of small Le Pliage pouches filled to the brim. s in my Bag” video, in which a small Le Pliage pouch is stuffed to the brim. It's shocking how much stuff you can fit in a bag that small,” creator Rachel Spencer says in an email. I easily stuffed my iPhone, wallet, digital camera, lipstick, and much, much more into it.”

Meanwhile, Le Pliage's biggest Zoomer push came from RushTok, an app section of a southern college sorority dedicated to rush week. For PNMs (potential new members), there is no better bag than a sturdy, absorbent tote bag that will hold a textbook or a 64-ounce Stanley Cup. 'My first mention of Longchamp's Le Pliage was in an article about the RushTok in the August 2021 newsletter. I remember writing that, in the words of one Lassie, “Longchamp bags are back.” Lewis believes that RushTok's recognition of Le Pliage bags has come full circle and recalls the first time he encountered a Le Pliage tote bag at the University of Missouri in 2006.

Lewis, however, finds it most interesting how Le Pliage burst from the bubble of SEC schools. He says, “The bag has been a Southern staple for decades, but this year it's gone into a frenzy, and now it seems to be everywhere.”

Tiffani Singleton, a 26-year-old Gen Z and founder of Poise Public Relations, grew up in South Florida, where she saw Longchamp's Le Pliage as a status symbol. She says, “I didn't grow up wealthy, but my classmates were in the social circles of Palm Beach and Boca, so I grew up in a community where wealth was inadvertently on display, even among children. By the time I was in high school, Le Pliage had become an integral part of the South Florida it-girl uniform,” she wrote in an email.

Singleton recently visited Paris, where Longchamp was founded, and saw many Le Pliage bags at the airport and on the streets. As the algorithmic gods would have it, [she] now sees Le Pliage all over Instagram and will definitely be buying one within a few weeks.” Now an adult with the means to invest, Singleton is happy to finally satisfy her younger self, who “begged” her mother for Le Pliage in 2010.

For Generation Z in particular, Le Pliage's prestige is a core aspect of its appeal to those who consider it a familiar and sensible investment as an entry-level big-girl bag. It's not a Louis Vuitton bag, of course, but there's a quiet luxury to Le Pliage. Of course, it's not a Louis Vuitton bag, but there's a quiet luxury to Le Pliage. And the fact that it is not so familiar that literally everyone has one also helps it succeed.” At the same time, it is both aspirational and accessible. While the same middle-class fashion brands are collapsing, Longchamp's stability as a luxury brand is due to its iconic tote bags at an accessible price point.

As Lewis points out, many Zoomers are now working professionals. 'These young people who have just graduated and gotten jobs don't want to take their Jansport or Lululemon backpacks to work. They need something new. “Chloe See, a 26-year-old growth and performance marketer and fashion content creator known on TikTok as @zillennialgirl, bought a large Le Pliage Classic for college in 2018 and now carries it to her corporate job, and it has proven to be a great bag to rediscover. 'The bag has been with me at every career fair, networking event, interview, conference, and industry trip. Even after several years in the workforce, it is still my go-to work bag.

Its reliability is another key element of Longchamp's Le Pliage's longstanding success. The bags are made of durable nylon and leather and are virtually unbreakable.

Sophie Delafontaine, artistic director of Longchamp and daughter of Cassegrain, creator of Le Pliage, explains that the bags have been passed down through the generations. We see them being passed down from mother to daughter, and we hope that for Generation Z shoppers, this is just the beginning of their relationship with us. We hope that the Le Pliage tote will be their introduction to Longchamp's craftsmanship and that they will look forward to using these bags with their families.” “

But like any trend that peaks, there are almost always troughs. “Stylish, cool 'people' [eventually] move on to the next whatever,” Lewis says, just as the ‘trend cycle’ does. “But the interesting thing about these bags is that they're purely functional. Even if you don't pick it up every day or carry it all the time, you can use Le Pliage all the time.”

And the pendulum will eventually swing back. At this point,” Lewis says, ”the trend cycles are so condensed that when they come back in five years, we'll be pulling out Le Pliage again. It's just a matter of time.”

The Alpha generation, born between 2010 and 2024, is already on board with the trend. I just bought my 14-year-old daughter Frida a Longchamp Le Pliage because she wanted one,” says Giovanna Noe, a New York-based fashion publicist. 'I was really surprised when she said she wanted it. And that's the magic of the perfect trend cycle. If we wait long enough, we can pass Le Pliage on to the next generation.