Wall Street Journal: For Philadelphia Consultant, Worn-in Luxury Bags Speak to Her Identity

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young woman holding a Worn in Luxury Bag
Image via The Wall Street Journal.

Worn-in luxury bags are the new fashion hit, with tattered carryalls flying off the shelves. But for Philadelphia business strategy consultant Sapna Bhatla, the style always spoke to her identity, writes Katharine K. Zarrella for The Wall Street Journal.

Bhatla — who works for Second Spark, an Ambler-based customer engagement agency focused in healthcare — immigrated to the United States with her parents. Her style-savvy mother would go to vintage estate sales and combine items she found there with her traditional attire.

That is why “pristine feels contrived and inauthentic to me,” said. Bhatla. “If you see my body, I have scars. I have marks. I have a life that’s been lived. And I’m happy to have signs to remind me of it. I like things that show a test of time and sturdiness and resilience.”

Bhatla owns a full arsenal of worn-in designer purses. Some of them she did herself, while others she picked up on eBay. One of her favorites is a no-name leather bag that is decades old. She found it at a Paris flea market.

“I’m not so crazy about brand names when it comes to vintage,” she said. “If it’s here today, it’s already good quality.”

Read more about the trend in The Wall Street Journal.

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Colourful Noir makes the case for not wearing luxury styles.

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