It used to be that a luxury bag would be so coveted that it achieved It bag status, flaunted by those constantly at the pulse of what’s cool in fashion. For decades, the It bag was the undisputed heavyweight champion of luxury fashion. For women, they were cultural currencies—signifiers of taste, wealth and belonging. Women’s fashion has had a long-standing relationship with the idea of the must-have bag, an item that sat at the perfect intersection of exclusivity and aspiration. Owning an It bag meant something. It turned regular people into street-style stars and waiting lists into year-long ordeals.
But that reality has changed in the past couple of years, and not just for women’s fashion. In any case, the idea of a men’s It bag hardly gripped male customers the way the Hermés Birkin or the Chanel 2.55 had for women. Despite the rise of men carrying luxury bags, despite designers from Louis Vuitton to Bottega Veneta pushing crossbody silhouettes, duffels and totes, and despite the explosion of fashion’s genderless movement, there is still no singular It bag for men that has managed to dominate the conversation.
Why? Because the very structure of men’s fashion resists the concept. The status symbols in menswear operate differently, with trends moving differently as well.
First, let’s acknowledge that men carrying bags (real bags; not backpacks or briefcases) is still a relatively new phenomenon in the luxury space. Sure, there were the attaché cases of the ’80s power broker, the messenger bags of the early-2000s creative director, and the tote bags of the fashion glossy-reading city guy, but none of them had the cultural grip of a Balenciaga City or Fendi Baguette.
Over the past decade, however, men’s bags have shifted from utility to luxury. Virgil Abloh’s tenure at Louis Vuitton introduced soft and supple portable versions of its signature trunks and Monogram crossbody bags designed specifically for men, while houses like Dior, Bottega Veneta and Prada have all doubled down on high-end bags for a male audience. Even Hermès began pushing the men’s version of its Birkin, the Haut à Courroies or HAC, featuring them on the runway in a multitude of treatments. There’s certainly a market for a male It bag equivalent.
But long before the term became a TikTok hashtag, men’s fashion has long been built on the idea of subtle, quiet luxury. Even in a world where streetwear and maximalism have pushed men to embrace louder statements, the most enduring status symbols in menswear remain understated: a Rolex Submariner, a Loro Piana cashmere sweater, and a perfectly tailored Brunello Cucinelli blazer among others. A man’s It bag would have to fit this mould. But the problem is that bags, by nature, are statement pieces. Even if they are discreet, they stand out in a way that a watch or a pair of loafers don’t, especially from afar.
Look at the Louis Vuitton Christopher backpack, arguably one of the most successful men’s bags of the past decade. It is an expensive investment and it is instantly recognisable, yet it never reached It bag status because it functions more as a utility piece than a style flex. The same goes for Dior’s Saddle bag for men. Sure, it had its moment; but even with Matthew Williams’ buckle design, it didn’t reach the same cultural relevance as its female’s counterpart. A true It bag for men would need to be both a flex and a staple, but men’s fashion doesn’t operate on that balance in the way women’s fashion does.
For a bag to reach It status, it has to be desirable yet rare. In the past, women’s It bags followed a formula: limited availability, the right celebrity endorsement, and just enough exclusivity to make them aspirational.
In today’s social media-fuelled fashion world, trends don’t simmer—they explode. One day, everyone’s carrying a Bottega Veneta Cassette bag. The next,it’s already overexposed and passé. In order for a men’s bag to break through, it would need to strike a balance between visibility and scarcity—a near-impossible feat in the age of viral fashion. The pace of fashion now moves too fast for a single bag to dominate. The exclusivity that once made an It bag desirable is nearly impossible to maintain when thousands of influencers are unboxing the same PR package on TikTok. What was once a slow burn has turned into a sprint, where virality is immediate but fleeting.
Brands now also face a paradox: they need to manufacture demand through exclusivity while also selling enough product to maximise profits.
Take the Telfar Shopping bag for example. For a moment, it felt like the next great It bag with its sleek design, affordable price tag, and its ties to a strong cultural movement. But instead of maintaining the air of exclusivity that fuels an It bag’s longevity, Telfar leaned into accessibility with restocks and “Bag Security Programme” that let anyone buy one. The result is an oversaturation of the bag, diluting its status as a must-have. When was the last time you heard of anyone talking about the bag until now?
On the opposite end, there’s the Hermès Birkin, still one of the only handbags that holds (or even increases) its value over time. Why? Because it’s nearly impossible to get one. You can’t just walk into an Hermès boutique and buy a Birkin. Allegedly, you need a relationship with a sales associate, a history of purchases across different categories, and even then, you might be offered a colour you don’t want. This level of gatekeeping is precisely why the Birkin remains in a class of its own, while other “It” contenders fade into the background. The brands that try to play both sides—mass production while maintaining an air of exclusivity—often struggle to keep their bags at the top.
In the 2000s, women’s fashion was dictated by clear, dominant figures. SarahJessica Parker made the Fendi Baguette a must-have, while the Olsen twins turned the Balenciaga City into an icon. Even in the 2010s, stars and celebrities like Rihanna and Kim Kardashian could make a bag sell out instantly. While we’ve had major male style figures like Pharrell Williams, A$AP Rocky and David Beckham influence trends, no man has dictated what bag every guy needs to have.
In general, our luxury purchases tend to be more personal. A man might invest in a Bottega Veneta Andiamo bag, but he’s not exactly buying it because Jacob Elordi has been toting it around like he’s permanently attached to it. He’s buying it because he likes the brand’s craftsmanship and minimalism. Without a singular cultural push, men’s bags simply don’t have the same viral trajectory as women’s bags.
That doesn’t mean certain bags didn’t have their moments. Right now, the Andiamo and Loewe’s Puzzle bag are some of the closest things to an It bag for men. The latter has been around for more than a decade now and is quite easily Loewe’s flagship bag that has lasted more than a viral moment. In fact, it could be said that the bag is experiencing a resurgence now partly due to the brand’s youth-focused social media strategy.
But in order for a true men’s It bag to actually happen, it would need to break through the noise in a way that feels both exclusive and organic.
It would need to resist overexposure while still maintaining demand. And, most importantly, it would need to have a meaningful cultural why behind it, and not just mere influencer hype. With the state of luxury fashion being what it is now, with the need to capture attention and make as much money as possible, that is unlikely to happen anytime soon. Until then, men’s bags will continue to be statement pieces and luxury staples, but they will never reach It bag status in the way women’s bags once did.
And maybe that’s all right. Because in the end, the true status symbol in menswear isn’t about carrying the right bag—it’s about making the right choice, regardless of trends.
