Quality of leather when buying new (2014)

namiboo

Member
May 6, 2014
57
0
Im pretty disappointed with a court bag that I recently tried to rehab.

Because of my disappointment, and my fiancé's dislike of used items, he is offering to buy a brand new one for me. I've explain to him how the leather is far more superior back in the '90s and '80s.

What's your opinion or experience with the new leather vs vintage learher
 
The vintage leather is definitely thicker and "better"...and has a raw, unlined leather interior (it is NOT, as most new SAs assume, "suede" fabric lining, but instead it's better.....raw, untreated leather).

That said, the new leathers are gorgeous. My love with bags started with Coach and I'm still a hardcore fan, even though I've branched out into the dangerous "Premier" territory (whatever that label means). SAs in really high-end boutiques are surprised when I mention that I carry Coach in addition to Valentino, Chanel, etc., and it kind of ticks me off (to say the least). They're nice SAs, but they say things like "oh, I've sold all my Coach bags off" and I respond immediately with,"really? well, I love Coach. A good bag is a good bag" and then they close their mouths in surprise.

That tangent over (sorry)....It depends on what line you're looking at, I think....but the Madison line is gorgeous......check that one out....It's true that many agree that the leathers are slightly "thinner"...and they are, but the new lines still hold up extremely, extremely well. Please give it another shot. You might like the Phoebes or the basic but gorgeous Cooper Satchel.
 
This is how I approach my coach bags. I don't rehab old bags, but I WILL buy an excellently rehabbed bag from someone else on ebay or etsy and I will buy an old coach bag in like new condition. When I buy bags in these two categories, I get a bag with excellent, top of the line, thick leather. But I also pay almost as much for the rehabbed or new bag as I would pay for a new bag on FOS or with PCE.

The leather quality on the originals line is not quite as good as the older bags. It is not as thick. But it is still very high quality leather. MUCH better than any other bags out there at Coach's price point. You can still get quite a few of the old styles in this nice, new leather. I think with PCE they are value for your money.

New Coach styles (not remakes of the old styles) are a mixed bag in regards to leather quality. Personally I think the leather quality on the legacy duffles is inferior to older coach styles and the leather quality on the madison bags is a mixed situation. It depends on the bag. The dying process for all the newer styles is inferior to the older dying process. The leather does not stay in the dying process as long and the dye is not as deeply soaked into the bag in my opinion. This means that a scratch will show up much more on a newer bag and the undyed leather will show through.

Old bags that have not been rehabbed may be a bargain, but if you are not into the extensive labor and process of rehabbing the bag, then the bag will never be in the state you want it to be in and will never be used by you. A bag that is sitting in your closet unused is not a bargain.

Just my thoughts....