“The offhand effortlessness The Row offers is an art in itself,” Sarah Mower said of the brand’s pre-fall 2024 collection. You only need to look at the stats (eBay reports a recent 380 per cent surge in interest in the Margaux bag alone) to see people are buying in. The tote bags – such as the Park style, which promises low-key luxury away from the logoed It-bag scene – have become this generation’s equivalent of Hermès Birkins – not just because of their four-figure price tags.
The Row has done the seemingly impossibly and made totes cool – no mean feat considering these are the holdalls you shove your work detritus in on a rushed Monday morning, the accessory that gets plonked on tube floors, and handed over to the coat check, while overflowing with spare flats and snacks. Totes were once the antithesis of everything aspirational about fashion – such as youth and spontaneity – but The Row had other ideas.
The long line of It-girls – from Kendall Jenner to Hailey Bieber – carrying The Row’s capacious totes over the last few years shows the Olsens have nailed it. While the Margaux has long been a A-lister favourite, this year we’ve already seen Zoë Kravitz hit the streets of New York with the Emilie, casually styled with a white vest top, baggy jeans and flip-flops from the brand. Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, Kendall Jenner embraced a similarly lo-fi look with her favourite Park tote, which she paired with a white bandeau top, black trousers and – again – The Row’s flip-flops (we’re sensing a theme here).
