Our Triumph Briefcase is a bag that truly earns its name from the moment its construction begins. Taking longer to make than almost any other item in the studio, the Triumph’s creation doesn’t happen without challenges, but seeing its gorgeous end result makes all that work worthwhile. 

Even kicking off the process through simply cutting the leather for the Triumph is quite difficult. For some perspective, the Working Tote — the focus of our previous M.O. series, whose coverage begins here — has less than ten dies which correspond to each of its pieces. The Triumph has twenty-two. This means it takes over twice as long to individually cut all the portions with the clicker press and inspect them for imperfections. 

Why so many pieces, then? Because the Triumph is fully leather-lined, from the gussets to the center dividers, which adds structure and style to the bag. Not only does it look amazing no matter which angle you see it from, the Triumph holds its shape and stands on its own regardless of how much or how little it’s currently holding. In addition, its interior contains two zippered pockets, each large enough to fit a laptop or magazine, as well as multiple smaller pockets sized exactly for phones, pens, and business cards.

Given this fact, our artisans have to be especially attentive when cutting this briefcase. It requires so much leather that absolutely no usable pieces of a hide can be wasted, and every one of those pieces has to look perfect because the bag is made in such a way that they’re more or less always on display. Once this part is all said and (expertly) done, the Triumph’s components are off to the splitter.

Shop the Triumph