Think Sustainability, Think Longchamp: The Brand’s Iconic Le Pliage Bag Goes Green
Since its launch in 1993, Le Pliage represents the everlasting symbol of Longchamp’s legacy with its classic design, leather flap, neat zip, and press stud. When walking down the street, it does not take a fashion aficionado to recognise the iconic shape and look of one of the industry’s favourite everyday bags.
Known for its durable and waterproof material and foldability, the bag has been paraded by notable figures such as Duchess Kate Middleton — who owns quite a few variations of the tote in different colours and sizes.
Now, close to 30 years after its inception, Longchamp has reinvented its design with a more eco-friendly approach. Cue Le Pliage® Green: the ongoing sustainable initiative to the cult favourite tote.
Longchamp took its first steps towards ethical fashion with their My Pliage® Signature and Green District collections two years ago: They introduced sustainable materials such as recycled polyester canvas and ECONYL®-certified recycled polyamide — otherwise known as nylon — canvas in their designs respectively.
This time around, the brand has evolved the Le Pliage bag with recycled nylon that contains between 70% and 100% recycled fibres certified by the Global Recycled Standard (GRS) for their latest campaign.
Other parts of the bags like its shoulder straps are also made from GRS-certified recycled polyester, which is derived from disposable waste like plastic bottles.
Longchamp has also made an effort to invest in ethical packaging: Their bags will be sold in recyclable paper bags fashioned from sustainably managed forests certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
The effort marks the beginning of Longchamp’s goal to have its entire Le Pliage® collection sustainable by next year. As for now, the eco-friendly bags will only be available in four colourways — Forest, Ocean, Earth and limited-edition Snow: An ode to nature’s most defining colours.
