I own both Gucci and BV, I love the style of the Gucci Jackie/Bouvier/Bardot bags especially. For me it's always the design of the bag, not the design of the logo.
BUT
my initials are GG, people call me G. I think it's completely hilarious to have my initials on my bags, and people who know me think it's good, too. It's the complete opposite of someone trying to impress a stranger by carrying a Gucci bag, only people who aren't strangers get all the reasons why I'm carrying this around:

Originally Posted by hovercraftier

I know the CEO is just trying to puff up his customers and his sales, but I believe that in many circles the BV weave is just as recognizable as the Gucci Gs. Just because it's not a letter doesn't mean it's not a recognizable trademark. If they really wanted to be obscure they'd stop making woven bags, period (not that I want that to happen!). Maybe I'm just defensive or suffering from multiple personality disorder because I love both BV and Gucci?

i actually have to disagree. the BV weave is recognizable only if one is quite familiar with high end items. wearing a gucci logo on the other hand is much more noticable to anyone, whether they are familiar with higher end items or not (don't get me wrong- i lovee gucci!). the weave like you said is a trademark but by no means as noticable as a gg web.

Originally Posted by NWpurselover

I'd be curious to see if there is overlap between Gucci and BV in our sub-forum. Anyone own both? I don't.

I only have BV and Balenciaga. No Guccis here.

Originally Posted by hovercraftier

BUT my initials are GG, people call me G. I think it's completely hilarious to have my initials on my bags, and people who know me think it's good, too.

This is too cute! I think I would get a kick outta carrying a bag with my initials too!

I think Gucci is more than just the GG logos on its bags (the canvas GG ones), similarly for LV, it too is beyond the LV monograms. Both brands have many full leather bags with no obvious (read in-your-face) logos that are beautiful. Having said that I am unlikely to purchase from these brands as my personal preference lies somewhere else (namely BV, Tods, H).

I do like YSL though. So its BV and YSL within the Gucci group.

Hmm, I'm not sure why he would be afraid BV would overtake Gucci. I mean isn't that just more money for Francois Pinault's corporation, LOL? I don't have any Gucci, but I do have some LV. While I prefer epi and damier, I still have a few mono pieces. I think in some ways there is a risk of reverse snobbery. While I do like BV because it is more under the radar I wouldn't want to buy a bag just for those reasons alone. There are a lot other factors with a bag(ex: just touch BV's leather and you could be swayed over by that reason alone!)

Originally Posted by jen512

i actually have to disagree. the BV weave is recognizable only if one is quite familiar with high end items. wearing a gucci logo on the other hand is much more noticable to anyone, whether they are familiar with higher end items or not (don't get me wrong- i lovee gucci!). the weave like you said is a trademark but by no means as noticable as a gg web.

Along with what you are saying, I think for the lay person BV definetely would not be as recognizable as Gucci. Sometimes, it is easy to forget that we are already a self-selecting group of people for being on tpf so recognizing certain brands even the more "subtle" ones can be like an automatic reflex for some folks.

The average population don't even know what Bottega Veneta is. They only recognize the Coach, Gucci, and LV monogram.

most people recognise logos and not the weaved leather of BV.
i have both - so where does that leave me? :P
Gucci was my first bag when I first started working. BV was after I had more $$ and able to afford. they are not cheap! haha!

I have a Gucci horsebit hobo. It is all leather and doesn't have any logos on it. It has the horsebit on the handle, but it isn't in your face. I don't think that the average person would recognize it as Gucci. I guess it is more of a BV mentality Gucci bag.

Thanks so much for sharing. It's interesting he said that, because as of this year, I have not seen a single logo bag in the Gucci store window display. It's like overnight, every monogram designer (except LV) went non-logo for their rockstar items. I personally think we're entering a new trend era.

I have all three - BV, Gucci (logo and regular leather) and YSL (I guess I have a split personality - Almost forgot, I have one Balenciaga, too!). People recognize Gucci the most. Although people do not recognize BV and YSL, I get compliments because they are beautiful and classic. I don't carry the Balenciaga as much as the others.

I always find it interesting how many brands, link back to each other - thanks for sharing.

I was flipping through my aunt's October O magazine this weekend and there was an article titled "Is your Handbag Killing You?" The article was about the weight and shape of handbags and how they can be bad for your back. They had a doctor select light bags that were recommended as healthy handbags. There were several pages of featured bags organized by weight. There was a photo of a carmino veneta as one of the recommended one pound bags (the lightest category). It was the only high end bag in this group although there were several other high end bags in the heavier groupings. I know that Oprah is a BV fan herself and as BV owners know it hard to switch to a less comfortable and light bag after carrying a BV. I don't have a scan of the article, but thought I'd share.

Thank you for sharing, Tibu. BV sales will probably shoot up after this article is published.

thank you for sharing.

Tibu, thanks for the article. I haven't seen any pics yet of Oprah with BV bags. I'll put it on my radar next time I see a pic of her.