Ce n’est pas un sac. C’est Le Pliage.

Having bought a black Pliage in Paris, after a long lunch in Le Marais, I suddenly panicked when I got it home to London and found it was brown. I thought the shop had packed the wrong colour. So in I go to the London Regent Street store with my receipt and ask for it to be replaced. A very patient assistant expressed concern but assured me my bag was black and held it up against many black things in the shop. Oops, yes, black. That’s the trouble with wearing sunglasses when shopping. So I accept brown is the new black and love my bag, sorry, my Pliage even more.

Longchamp, the Parisian fashion house and luxury leather goods company, has launched its first ad campaign for its most iconic line, Le Pliage with the tagline ‘It is not a bag. It is Le Pliage’.

Inspired by origami, and a trip that Longchamp’s founder’s son Philippe Cassegrain took to Japan, Le Pliage instantly rocketed to fame when debuted in 1993. It is now thought to be found in every home in France.

Crafted with leather handles, a signature flap, colorful nylon – and now recycled fabric – Le Pliage is named after the French verb “to fold”.

Whether for travel, or everyday use, Le Pliage really is a must, a design icon – because of its ingenuity in folding to stow away, and its status as the first style to pair nylon and leather in a chic way and all for a surprisingly affordable price.

The tagline was inspired by an insightful observation from Longchamp’s now CEO Jean Cassegrain and Artistic Director Sophie Delefontaine, that: “Le Pliage is not a bag. It is a concept.”  It is the perfect fusion of fashion and function representative of the desire to go places – to get things done – while simultaneously looking amazing. But there is no way that it is just a bag!

To bring the campaign to life, famed brand agency FRED & FARID partnered with the renowned photographer and film director, Sander Plug to create a film and print campaign to show how people interact with Le Pliage to prove: “It is not a bag. It is Le Pliage.”

Here are the fabulous ads… enjoy!

 

For example, in “Eco,” a discarded plastic bottle magically transforms into a more durable Le Pliage, showing off the brand’s new sustainable collection. The film sheds a glamorous perspective on what it means to create and carry a recycled object. It is just as chic – and even more chic – to take care of the Earth and look great while doing so.

The launch of Le Pliage Green represents the culmination of Longchamp’s efforts to source sustainable alternatives to its hard-wearing nylon canvas. “We strongly believe in the future of this fibre and we commit ourselves to use exclusively recycled canvas in all our products by 2023” says Sophie Delafontaine, Creative Director of Longchamp.

“Eco”

In a clear demonstration of the brand’s overarching Parisian Spirit, “Croissant” compares the folding of Le Pliage to the folding of a croissant.

“Croissant”

In “Gliding,” a man walks into frame with Le Pliage® Signature model and bends to slide it across an ice rink, as if it were a curling stone.

“Gliding”

With 6 films suggesting Le Pliage is not a bag, the 3 final films are a tongue-in-cheek mini series called: “Am I Not A Bag?”

“Group Therapy”

It’s a great campaign and makes me love My Pliage even more.

Shop here www.longchamp.com Le Pliage shoulder bags from £90.

Read more about my trip to Paris here.