customers. Suitcases arrived on loan from Karl
Lagerfeld, Virgil Abloh and David Fincher.
In December, Rimowa launched a pop-up shop
in Los Angeles. (Arnault was in atendance, as
were Pharrell and Alessandra Ambrosio.) And
as the company enters its 120th year, Arnault
hints at global store openings, product redesigns
and fresh collaborations. (Already it’s created
a suitcase with Fendi, another LVMH propery.)
But success isn’t as simple as some creative
cross-promotion. Rimowa is revamping as new
competitors have hit the market: lugage start-
ups such as Raden and Away feature similarly
minimalist design, plus tech-friendly features
like USB chargers and location sensors. Two years
ago, Rimowa made its run for digital dominance
with the E-Tag — an electronic-ink panel that
allows customers to check in and track their
lugage via an app.
Muelas sugests Rimowa’s new competition
might just help it in the long run: “hey’re telling
customers, ‘Hey, you should care about your
suitcase.’ he diference is whether you want to
buy the design object du jour or an investment
piece that’s going to last a lifetime.”
Arnault is banking on that longeviy: both the
institutional expertise of a historic company and
the physical strength of its product. Rimowa’s
pieces take on a patina over time. “Aluminium has
personaliy. It acquires character,” Arnault says.
“he stickers, the dents, the scratches: the suitcase
becomes well-travelled with you.”
It’s not the sort of sentiment you expect to
hear from someone barely out of universiy:
a commitment to tradition, reliabiliy and
authenticiy. As Arnault continues remaking
Rimowa, it’s clear he’s got a tight grip on the
values that mater most.
Above: new aluminium shells
and frames await assembly
in one of Rimowa’s factories
Right: a 2018 collaboration
with Supreme produced a 45l
carry-on and an 82l suitcase
in black or redhe corrugated aluminium used on pre-WWII
Junkers aircrat (a Ju-52 trimotor, below),
inspired Rimowa’s tough grooved metal lugage48 Style
Gety