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Younger Consumers Are Embracing It Bags From The Past
Fashion has always been obsessed with what comes next – with each season promising a new collection, silhouette, shoe, bag or accessories. Maisons have the highest hope that either the clothes or the accessories become the latest object of desire. However, for a generation raised amidst an accelerated fashion cycle, some of the most desirable pieces are not exactly new.
Across fashion, a growing appetite for vintage and archival pieces is giving the past a new kind of circulation. Handbags from previous decades are being hunted down, old collections are being revisited and jewellery with signs of age can feel more fascinating than something new and novel from a boutique. There is an increasing appeal and desire for objects that come with heritage and history.
This shift is particularly telling in luxury, where newness has long been a fundamental part of the desire cycle yet, when trends can be born and fade within a week — the ability to survive changing tastes becomes valuable in itself.
For younger consumers, looking backwards is not necessarily an escape from contemporary fashion. It is becoming a way of navigating it. The new ‘heirloom’ is simply something inherited or can be found in the past.
Why Younger Consumers Want What Came Before
The appeal of fashion’s past begins with a growing fatigue with its present. In an environment where newness begins to lose its power as everything is constantly being framed as the next big thing, the idea of owning something that has survived decades can feel more meaningful.
Vintage and archival fashion offers an alternative to that problem. Their significance has already been established by time and this is where nostalgia plays a role, particularly among the young consumers. The 1990s and 2000s have been repeatedly reinterpreted through fashion, music and popular culture but the attraction to it is not about recreating the past. It is about taking elements of it and making them personal.
The appeal of an archival piece is therefore partly its distance from the current trend cycle as it offers a new way to participate in fashion without being dictated by the present. In a 2025 report by Boston Consulting Group and Vestiaire Collection, second hand pieces account for up to 32 per cent of younger consumer’s wardrobes globally, rising to 45 per cent for handbags.
The same research found that around 80 per cent of these respondents had bought or discovered a new brand through second hand shopping, demonstrating how resale has become a discovery channel. These numbers itself suggest that it is more than a fleeting aesthetic preference. The past is not merely a place fashion returns to, it is now where consumers go looking for.
5 Vintage IT Bags Worth Knowing
The renewed interest in fashion’s past is most visible in the handbags younger consumers are hunting down.
1. Fendi Baguette
It is one of the few bags that showcase fashion’s ability of turning an object into a cultural moment. Closely associated with the early 2000s fashion landscape, its longevity has allowed it to move from a period It bag to a piece of fashion history.
2. Chloé Paddington
Oversized, hardware heavy and unmistakably of its time, the Paddington embodies the return of 2000s fashion. Its renewed desirability demonstrates how pieces once considered emblematic of a particular era can be reassessed by a new generation.
3. Balenciaga City
The Balenciaga City bag represents a different kind of nostalgia — one rooted in the fashion language of the 2000s and the rise of celebrity-driven street style. Its significance lies not only in its recognisable shape, but in the creative and cultural moment it represents.
4. Louis Vuitton Speedy
Few bags have the staying power of the Louis Vuitton Speedy. First introduced in the 1930s, the silhouette has moved through generations without losing its relevance. Today, however, the appeal is increasingly concentrated around older iterations and collectible collaborations, particularly the colourful Murakami and Stephen Sprouse versions. These are not simply vintage Louis Vuitton bags; they are pieces of the house’s fashion history that happen to have become desirable again.
5. Miu Miu Vitello Bow
The Miu Miu Vitello Bow is exactly the kind of obscure archival find that gives vintage shopping its appeal. Dating to the brand’s early-2000s period, the soft leather silhouette is distinguished by its oversized bow detailing and distinctly playful femininity — a world away from the more polished Miu Miu of today. Vintage Vitello Bow bags are currently circulating through Singapore’s resale market, including examples explicitly marketed as vintage and Y2K pieces.
The Value of What Lasts
Together, these bags reveal why vintage fashion has been appealing far more than newer season bags. None of them were designed for today’s trend cycle, yet each one has found a new audience to cater to. In fact, some of these bags had fallen out of favour before being rediscovered by a younger generation.
This suggests that something does not necessarily have to remain relevant to last. Sometimes, its ability to survive changing tastes is exactly what allows it to be rediscovered in the first place.
The desire for something that lasts is not particularly new to luxury. Craftsmanship, quality materials and durability have always been central to what luxury is known for, but what is changing is the way younger consumers relate those qualities to their own sense of ownership.
When the Past Becomes the Next Big Thing
The growing desirability of heritage does create an unavoidable paradox. As more consumers look to the past for authenticity and individuality – the more valuable the past is to be commercialised.
Luxury houses have increasingly mined their archives for inspiration, reviving old silhouettes, reissuing recognisable bags and returning to design codes associated with those eras. It’s simple, heritage gives established houses something that newer labels cannot easily manufacture – an existing history.
The current vintage bag revival makes this very clear. For example, Balenciaga reintroduced the Le City after it had already begun circulating on the resale market, while Chloe brought back the Paddington for its Autumn/Winter 2025 collection. Fendi as well, has continued to keep the Baguette in circulation through anniversary editions and collaborations.
But what happens when history itself becomes a product?
There is a difference between discovering an original bag from a past collection and buying a contemporary version that is essentially just another bag on the shelf. One has accumulated its history naturally, while the other is a replica of the original in a newer shell. Neither is necessarily more desirable, but the distinction reveals the tension at the heart of these younger consumers’ relationship with heritage. As it turns into an opportunity to be commercialised, it risks losing what made it desirable in the first place.
Fashion archives can become both refuge and resource, a place where consumers search for something they resonate with and where brands search for their next opportunity. However, this does not necessarily diminish the value of heritage. When an increasing number of products can reference the past, the difference between something that has history and something that merely looks historical becomes more significant.
Perhaps, that is what these younger consumers are buying into — not simply nostalgia or vintage but the idea that fashion can mean more when it has already lived a life. In a modern landscape where almost everything is designed to be replaced, the new heirloom is something found in the past, worn in the present and given the possibility of a future.
For more on the latest in luxury fashion and style reads, click here.
The post Younger Consumers Are Embracing It Bags From The Past appeared first on LUXUO.
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8 Whiskies That Turn Heritage Into Modern Luxury
In luxury whisky, age forms only part of the story. The bottles commanding attention in 2026 are captivating because they combine rarity with something harder to reproduce: institutional memory. Historic cask programmes, family succession, long-held blending philosophies and decades of patient maturation give established houses a distinctive advantage.
Each unique combination makes the strongest heritage stories relevant now. They show how the past gains value when it remains useful.
From an 88-year-old Balvenie to The Macallan’s return to one of whisky collecting’s most celebrated narratives, these recent releases and recognisable collections demonstrate how modern luxury can preserve history while directing it towards the future.
When Time Becomes the Rarest Ingredient
1. The Balvenie 1931 Collection 88 Year Old
Few releases make heritage as tangible as The Balvenie’s 88 Year Old. With only 17 bottles existing, the whisky was distilled in 1931 and matured in a European oak sherry butt before being bottled after 88 years.
The date carries additional significance: 1931 also marked the year The Balvenie established its Home Malt Floor, preserving a traditional practice that remains part of the distillery’s production philosophy.
More than an extreme age statement, the whisky represents generations of custodianship. The people who filled the cask entrusted it to a future they would never see. Truly a luxury measured through patience.
Where Speyside Meets Bordeaux
2. Glenfiddich Grand Château 31 Year Old
Glenfiddich 31 Year Old Grand Château. Images courtesy of Glenfiddich.
While it is not a new release, Glenfiddich’s Grand Château offers a distinctive interpretation of heritage. The 31-year-old single malt spent 22 years maturing before a nine-year finish in Bordeaux red-wine casks, extending Glenfiddich’s long history of cask experimentation.
Grand Château places Speyside whisky in dialogue with another historic luxury culture: Bordeaux wine.
This kind of exchange keeps established houses relevant. Heritage can preserve a recognisable identity while creating space for new flavour, texture and cultural reference points.
Heritage Is Also About Who Takes Over
3. Laphroaig Strong Characters Chapter 2 — 35 Year Old
Laphroaig’s Strong Characters series shifts the focus from liquid to lineage. The second chapter pays tribute to Dugald Johnston, who inherited responsibility for Laphroaig in the 19th century following the death of his father, distillery co-founder Donald Johnston. The 35 Year Old therefore tells a broader story about succession.
Luxury culture frequently celebrates founders, while enduring houses rely equally on those who inherit responsibility after them. Distilleries thrive because each generation chooses to continue the work.
Old Islay, New Design
4. Bowmore Captivo 20 Year Old Collection
Founded in 1779, Bowmore is recognised as Islay’s oldest licensed distillery. Its Captivo Collection brings that history into conversation with contemporary design through a collaboration with Snarkitecture. The collection comprises two 20-year-old whiskies, exploring sherry and oak maturation through distinctly modern presentation.
Bowmore raises an increasingly relevant question for heritage luxury: how does a centuries-old house communicate its history to collectors who also respond to architecture, art and contemporary design?
Preserving heritage and presenting heritage each require their own form of craft.
Read More: Unpacking 40 Year Old Whiskies: Time Encapsulated in a Bottle
When Whisky Becomes an Archive
5. The Macallan Romantica Collection
The Macallan’s Romantica Collection turns house history into cultural capital. Built around the centenary of the legendary 1926 vintage, the project introduces a 1986 whisky matured for 40 years in a single sherry-seasoned European oak cask.
It also reconnects with artists including Sir Peter Blake and Valerio Adami, whose work became intertwined with the mythology surrounding bottles from the celebrated 1926 cask.
Here, heritage extends beyond distillation. The Macallan preserves liquid, stories, artworks and collecting culture, revealing how rare whisky became a global luxury category.
The Luxury of Consistency
6. The Macallan Sherry Oak 30 Year Old
Some heritage stories find their power through continuity. The Macallan Sherry Oak 30 Year Old represents a disciplined expression of that principle.
Sherry-seasoned European oak has long been central to The Macallan’s identity, and the 30 Year Old reinforces the idea that consistency itself can become a form of luxury.
In an industry drawn to unusual finishes and collaborations, maintaining a recognisable house style across decades demands restraint alongside innovation. Sometimes progress means knowing what deserves to remain constant.
What the Master Blender Leaves Behind
7. Royal Salute Small Batch Collection 001 — 27 Year Old
Royal Salute’s Small Batch Collection explores another essential element of heritage: foresight. The 27 Year Old Batch 001 draws on long-aged stocks selected from reserves built over decades, demonstrating how luxury whisky often depends on decisions made long before a commercial release takes shape.
Its significance lies in the blending craft itself. Royal Salute has always built its identity around mature whiskies and long-term custodianship, and this release makes that process visible: rarity begins not with packaging, but with the decision to hold exceptional liquid back for the future.
The Whisky That Helped Define Luxury Scotch
8. Chivas Regal 25 Year Old
First introduced in the early 20th century, Chivas Regal 25 became associated with the glamour of pre-Prohibition New York before disappearing when Prohibition arrived in 1920. Revived in 2007, the modern expression reconnects the house with one of the earliest ideas of prestige blended Scotch.
Every component whisky is aged for at least 25 years, reinforcing the role of blending as an inherited luxury craft. Its heritage lies not only in age, but in the continuity of a philosophy: that blended Scotch can stand at the highest end of the whisky hierarchy.
Heritage Is a Decision
The strongest heritage whiskies draw their value from more than centuries-old foundations. Their distinction comes from old stocks, established cask relationships, inherited knowledge and the judgement required to decide when tradition should remain untouched and when it should evolve.
The rarest asset in whisky may be an old cask. It may also be the wisdom to recognise what deserves to move forward.
For more on the latest in alcohol and luxury spirits stories, click here.
The post 8 Whiskies That Turn Heritage Into Modern Luxury appeared first on LUXUO.
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Monday, September 7, 2026
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Luxury’s New Global Faces: The Latest Maison Ambassadors
Luxury’s ambassador roster is getting a refresh. From fashion and fine jewellery to watches and fragrance, the second half of 2026 has brought a new wave of celebrity appointments spanning Hollywood, Chinese and Korean entertainment, and a younger generation of screen talent.
The maisons may remain rooted in Milan, Geneva, Paris, Madrid, London and New York, while the personalities carrying their names come from a far broader cultural map. Here are the latest names joining the roll call.
Soobin Joins Dolce&Gabbana
Most recently, Dolce&Gabbana named Soobin of TOMORROW X TOGETHER (TXT) its newest Global Ambassador, formalising a relationship that had already been building through previous appearances with the Italian maison.
The appointment places the K-pop star within a house defined by theatrical Italian glamour, sharp tailoring and highly recognisable visual codes. For Dolce&Gabbana, Soobin brings considerable international reach and an intensely engaged fan base; for the artist, the role marks another example of Korean talent being positioned globally rather than solely as an Asia-facing representative.
Robert Pattinson Enters Jaeger-LeCoultre
Earlier this month, Robert Pattinson joined Jaeger-LeCoultre as its new Global Ambassador. The partnership brings together one of contemporary cinema’s most recognisable actors and a manufacture whose identity rests heavily on craftsmanship, artistic expression and technical watchmaking. Jaeger-LeCoultre describes Pattinson’s independent creative approach as closely aligned with the values of the maison.
Read more: IU Enters a New Chapter as Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Global Brand Ambassador
Spike Fearn Becomes LOEWE’s New Brand Ambassador
LOEWE welcomed British actor Spike Fearn as its newest Brand Ambassador in early September. The house announced the appointment as it continues its new creative chapter under Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez. LOEWE’s own announcement identifies Fearn specifically as a Brand Ambassador, rather than using the title Global Ambassador.
Known for roles including Aftersun and Alien: Romulus, Fearn brings an emerging, less conventional form of celebrity to a maison whose identity increasingly sits at the intersection of fashion, craft and contemporary culture.
Manu Ríos Takes On Emporio Armani Accessories
Spanish actor Manu Ríos has joined Emporio Armani as global ambassador for its eyewear, watches and jewellery collections. The appointment accompanies the Fall/Winter 2026/27 accessories campaign, photographed by Alasdair McLellan, and positions Ríos as the youthful face of several of Emporio Armani’s key accessory categories. Rather than representing the entire Armani universe, his remit is tightly focused — linking eyewear, jewellery and watches through a single contemporary personality.
Go Youn Jung Joins Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co. announced South Korean actress Go Youn Jung as its newest ambassador. The actress is expected to feature across campaigns and brand activities involving signature collections including Tiffany Bird on a Rock and Tiffany HardWear, alongside the jeweller’s high-jewellery creations. The breadth of her involvement makes the appointment one of the most notable jewellery announcements of late summer.
Yang Zi Becomes Pomellato’s Global Brand Ambassador
Milanese jeweller Pomellato appointed Chinese actress Yang Zi its Global Brand Ambassador. Her first collaboration with the maison centres on Nudo, Pomellato’s signature gemstone collection, in a campaign photographed by Chen Man. One of the country’s most prominent screen stars is instead representing the Milanese house on an explicitly international level.
Shin Min-a Joins OMEGA
Swiss watchmaker OMEGA announced acclaimed Korean actress Shin Min-a as its newest Brand Ambassador. She joins an established roster that includes George Clooney, Nicole Kidman, Eddie Redmayne, Hyun Bin and Park Bo-gum. OMEGA highlighted her longstanding career, authenticity and cross-generational appeal when announcing the partnership.
The actress marked the appointment wearing an Aqua Terra 30mm in 18K Moonshine Gold, pairing one of OMEGA’s increasingly important women’s watch propositions with a familiar face across Asian entertainment.
Jung Kook Becomes Graff’s New Global Ambassador
Jung Kook of BTS has joined Graff as a new Global Ambassador, marking one of 2026’s highest-profile high-jewellery partnerships. The British jeweller introduced the singer through its Laurence Graff Signature campaign, pairing his international profile with sculptural gold pieces inspired by the geometry and light of diamonds. Graff explicitly identifies Jung Kook as its new global ambassador.
The appointment brings one of pop culture’s biggest names into a house operating at the most exclusive end of jewellery — an intriguing meeting of mass cultural visibility and rarefied luxury.
Jonathan Bailey Brings Fragrance to Giorgio Armani Beauty
Finally, Jonathan Bailey joins the roll call through a more specialised appointment as Giorgio Armani Beauty’s Global Fragrance Ambassador. The British actor fronts the campaign for the house’s new masculine fragrance, I Will, adding beauty to an ambassador landscape otherwise dominated by fashion, jewellery and watches. The appointment demonstrates how fragrance continues to use internationally recognised screen talent to give new launches an immediate cultural identity.
The latest appointments follow an already busy first half of the year. Jung Kook also joined Hublot as a Global Ambassador, while Ningning of aespa and Han of Stray Kids joined Gucci and Tod’s respectively. Dua Lipa added Bvlgari to her luxury portfolio and Natalie Portman became Tiffany & Co. as a Global Ambassador.
For more on the latest in luxury fashion and style reads, click here.
The post Luxury’s New Global Faces: The Latest Maison Ambassadors appeared first on LUXUO.
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