GOYARD: LUGGAGE-MAKER TO THE STARS

Goyard is a French luxury goods company founded in 1853 by François Goyard but with a history that dates back much further. The company began as a malletier – a maker of high-end trunks, storage boxes and luggage – by appointment to royalty and Courtisans. Their reputation for luxurious finishes and attention to detail marked them out as one of the pre-eminent labels which only those with the finest tastes (and the deepest pockets) were fortunate enough to own. The brand has grown steadily over the years to offer a wide range of high-quality leather goods, including luggage, handbags, and accessories. Goyard’s products are often identified by their distinctive chevron canvas pattern, a signature of the house, which was first introduced in 1892.

One of the great luxury Parisian houses, Goyard traces its foundation back to the establishment of the Maison Martin (later Maison Morel) – a trunk maker to aristocratic high society that was established in 1792. The firm originally produced storage boxes and carriage boxes for the secure transport of valuables and treasured possessions. Pierre-François Martin, the house’s initial founder bequeaths his business to his favoured employee, a Louis-Henri Morel in 1841, for whom Martin has arranged a marriage. Martin had no children of his own and was keen to ensure that his legacy would continue. Morel hired a young François Goyard in 1845 who would eventually take over the house and rename it in 1853 when Morel died suddenly.

Under the Goyard name, the maison would continue to grow, attracting new customers, from Paris and further afield. With the advent of ocean liners and steamships, the company experienced a significant uplift in demand as wealthy travellers required appropriate luggage and were keen to demonstrate their great taste and wealth to other travellers. The traditional malletiers developed their own house patterns and motifs to make their pieces distinguishable from competitors (brands such as Au Départ, Au Touriste, Aux États Unis, Louis Vuitton and Moynat). Goyard’s particular pattern would be known as the “Goyardine”.

Despite a proliferation in high-end trunkmakers on both sides of the Atlantic (see Delvaux, Finnigans, Globe-Trotter, Gucci, H.J. Cave, Hartmann and Tanner Krolle), Goyard quickly became the doyenne of the European nobility, Asian maharajahs and American dynastic families, receiving orders from the courts of England, Yugoslavia and Greece, the Russian Imperial Court and even the President of the United States. Indeed, such was the status of the brand that awards of Royal Warrants and Presidential seals were forthcoming, marking the brand as the most coveted of its class. The endorsement of Hollywood stars and socialites would soon follow and has continued to this day.

Much of Goyard’s early success was due in part to its focus on high-quality craftsmanship and the sourcing of the finest materials. Goyard customers can avail of innumerable customisation options too, putting their own unique stamp on their products through a bespoke customisation pathway. Goyard looked to the campaign furniture makers that had equipped military officers in the field over the past centuries for inspiration and created luggage that would become a travel system. Customers could use their cases as writing desks, travel tables, vanity closets, wardrobes and more. Goyard’s team could craft, by hand, whatever wish their customer’s desired, with options including clocks, thermometers, weather stations and more. Demonstrating at the grandest world exhibitions, Goyard reached many new customers, typically seasoned world travellers, and carved a niche supplying wealthy tourists with expedition-ready cases that doubled as campaign furniture.

As such, the company quickly gained a reputation for its luxurious and durable products. Quirkily, such was Goyard’s success that the brand’s customers encountered a unique problem. The distinct Goyardine pattern that their woven materials would present had once been sufficient to distinguish a customer’s luggage from another. However, as more customers would go to Goyard for their cases, soon a traveller might find that other voyagers would have similar cases and it would be hard to identify their own from the others. Goyard’s solution was to create the luggage stripe: a band of colours that would be stitched across the Goyard cases subject to the customer’s preferences. Many customers would come from ancient families with their own coats of arms and heraldic colourways which would be referenced on their luggage bands. This solution proved to be most ingenious until Goyard’s success once again foiled them. When members of the same family or household would travel together, the luggage stripes might even be the same or too similar to ascertain which was which! Goyard’s team would begin to offer monogramming and customisation options allowing for the display of a coat of arms or heraldic badges too further distinguish the owners from one another.

With their brand’s social status firmly established and the orders flowing, Goyard would put their stamp on other luxury goods. In the 1920s, the atelier began to manufacture a wider range of products, befitting of their loyal customer base and the changing marketplace (with travel by sea no longer fashionable nor necessary with the age of air travel). Goyard introduced lines including handbags, wallets, and various other accessories and must-have items. The company also began to open new stores in major cities around the world to showcase their collections and allow customers to commission bespoke orders.

Testament to the success of this adaptive strategy, the Saint Louis tote was introduced in the 1930s and has attained an iconic status and has been the brand’s best seller ever since. A large, unstructured tote bag with a shoulder strap comes in a variety of sizes and colour choices. The highly sought-after and instantly recognisable tote bag has become an essential for the most fashionable jet setters. We have included the bag on our exclusive luxury goods registry.

Other iconic pieces include the Anjou tote, a smaller version of the Saint Louis tote, the Bellechasse tote, the Saigon bag and the Artois bag. Despite the Goyard brand having earned its reputation over decades of crafting luxury travel goods and luggage, the brand has become synonymous with luxury handbags. You can purchase these in-store at one of the 35 Goyard boutiques around the world or online here (registered customers only). There are a huge selection available pre-owned on eBay, with some items listed at very affordable prices.

Today, Goyard is one of the most prestigious and successful luxury goods brands in the world. The company’s products are sold in over 60 countries in over 250 stores worldwide. Goyard is a symbol of luxury, quality, and style. Unlike rival brands, Goyard remains independent and family-owned having been acquired by the Signoles family in 1988.

Are you a Goyard fan? What is your favourite piece? Have you had any experience of the bespoke process with Goyard? If so we would welcome your contributions in the comments section.

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