An exclusive collaboration featuring The New Shopping Bag.
Paul Smith was one of the very first stockists of SUSAN BIJL bags, offering them in their London and New York shops over 20 years ago. They remain a firm favourite amongst Paul Smith staff and customers and are appreciated for their durability and stylish design.
We appreciate Paul Smith’s unmistakable blend of classic British tailoring with playful, unexpected twists. The brand’s bold use of colour, pattern, and visual elements resonates with SUSAN BIJL’s love for timeless yet vibrant design. We admire Paul Smith’s ability to balance sophistication with a sense of humour and creativity, finding a shared ethos in creating products that are both functional and full of character.
Paul Smith had sold our bags for several years when the idea of a collaboration arose. The team at Paul Smith dove into their archives, combing through countless prints. The Spring/Summer 1989 runway collection stood out because the stripes and use of colours felt unmistakably Paul Smith.
Source: Paul Smith archive
In the original show documentation, models walked the runway, creating movement in the garments. Intrigued by how the stripes, colours and different fabrics interacted, Paul Smith’s team used sections of the photos to highlight the effect of the movement within the prints. The intention was to preserve the crinkles, shadows, and fluidity of the original garments, adding depth and character to the bags.
The combination of stripes in different sizes and colours in the runway collection inspired the bag composition, leading to three designs that perfectly combine Paul Smith’s graphic sensibility with SUSAN BIJL’s The New Shopping Bag.
The collection presents The New Shopping Bag in three different print designs. Two are available in medium size, and one is available in large size. The bags are available at Paul Smith and SUSAN BIJL, both online and in stores.
