you know what? all I can say is have an arsenal of bags if you can. I own two Carlys and maybe the only thing that keeps them intact is the fact that I own a bazillion bags that I rotate. I also never try to overload any one of them. I mean lets face it, they are designed to look pretty not functional unfortunately.
I honestly think this is the reason I don't have more problems than I do, but as of late, I've had some bag issues as well. The bags really should be functional and live up to the Coach reputation, but I do think a lot are slipping through the QC check cracks, as well as some issues that are not apparent on a brief inspection simply show up after a few uses. Sad but true!
I would do as the other poster suggests, go in and ask for a replacement right away. I never thought about it, but I've done that twice, and when I asked, the SA that handled my gunmetal Peyton issue said ok, I'll ask the manager and BRB. I stayed in the front of the store because I was trying to decide between the Lindsay and Peyton (since they were the same price). THe SA returned quickly and said I could replace with anything in the same price, or buy a more or less expensive item and pay the difference...or get it refunded to my card for the lower priced item diff. It was no hassle, but keep in mind I took it in after using it for 1.5 days and the metallic wore off. I guess they could have said "normal wear and tear", but I would have argued like everything.
On the other hand, I had the Legacy top handle and HATED it, everything about the bag...nothing worked. I did use it for a while, and last time I was at the boutique, I asked my SA to "do something", and she told me to remove my stuff and that I was not going home with the bag. I was credited on the spot and got the satchel. I had used this top handle quite a bit, actually.
Overall I can't complain with the boutique's handling of my problems at all, but the thing is all repair issues are really subjective and depends on the interpretation of the SA and/or manager involved. And sometimes it seems to depend on their "mood". I've always made up my mind to push the issue, but also to leave and go to another boutique when I get an answer that I don't like. If you keep asking, eventually it's likely you will get the answer you want since there's so much variability between stores and management.
This is part of the reason I shop at a boutique (in general) that's out of state and over an hour away from me...I get the best service there! However, I admit I'm lucky in that there are a lot of boutiques I can choose to go to that's 1.5 or less away from me. I've made my rounds over the last year, and hopped around a bit just because the service is so crappy at some of them. I also will NOT deal with any SA that has an attitude or acts like a snot bag. Hell will freeze over before I give that person and store my business...I would resort to ordering directly from JAX or online before that happens, so if they don't want my business, that's fine with me. That's one reason I stopped shopping at the boutique that's only about 10 minutes from my house.
I think sometimes our "bad experiences" make us less willing (and more timid) to ask when we have a problem or don't like the specific bag they want to sell us. I'm sure that sometimes they get annoyed with me when I have them bring out several bags from the back so that I can choose, etc., But just remember that you pay a LOT of money for the bag, and excellent customer service is built into the price of the bag, whether they want to admit it or not. Also, there's a warranty on the bags for a reason, so don't be shy to ask when you have a problem!