Handbags

[gertrudecloset]

I have one Dooney and Bourke bag that I purchased from the I love Dooney site.  It's not leather, but the coated canvass that is so nice.  It's a satchel/crossbody doctor bag.  I love it.  It's pink so I only wear it in the Summer.

I love Dooney quality but hey with so much going on now, many are not needing handbags other than the ones they currently have.  That could be a reason for the slow sales.

[Sooner]

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@stevieb wrote:

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@Sooner wrote:

They aren't a hot fashion item I'd think except for older people like me. They aren't exclusive and they are a little "retro" now. 

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@Sooner  It also seems they haven't done much that's very different in a long time, even given there's only so much to be done with handbags. Their more unique bags are not priced for many potential customers and certainly not for home shopping, where the focus, for better or for worse, is on volume sales. I also think Dooney might have reached the saturation point with QVC. I believe there might be more traction over on HSN, where they haven't been pushing them so hard for years.

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@stevieb I agree!  I also think Talbots is clinging to old style clothing and not moving forward to different styles and types of clothing even old people like me wear.  

And heaven help them, Talbots has more stripes on  clothes than the State Pen!

[FastDogWalker2]

@Shanus - I love D and B bags and have a decent collection but with Covid and not going places, I only use my two crossbody D and B's now.  I hope to go back to the others in the future.

[Shanus]

IMHO, Dooney had been over exposed on Q and other sites. Anyone who wanted one/could afford to purchase them, had acquired as many as they wanted and sales went way down because of over saturation and price. 

It almost killed me to sell my huge florentine leather shoulder bags, but I just couldn't carry them more than a few hours. Another painful sale was my larger LV bags. So heavy when loaded with my stuff. Great prices received for all of them...not EBAY. 

DD smaller than me and wanted no part of any of them and DIL just not a designer label kinda girl.  I DID save one large bag of each for travel and my mom's smaller Chanel bag which I haven't used yet...no where to go. It's the familiar black one, square quilted style with chain handle. She was gifted it by my aunt for her 75th birthday. She kept it in the felt bag and black and white box...never used. 

I do see Dooney shows coming up in the next several weeks. I'm hoping they change to newer styles and do them in lighterweight nylon, otherwise I'm out. 

[Indra]

At this point in my life, I avoiding anything constrictive and am all about feeling free and unconfined (except for or because I wear my mask and practice social distancing).  Therefore, while I love my gorgeous leather handbags, I'm all about fabric right now.  So bring on the Kipling, MZ Wallace, Vera Bradley, etc.  Fortunately, I already had those bags ready to go before 2020.

[stevieb]

As noted, I too am over Dooney and have been for a while. And while I understand issues related to weight and feeling constricted, it really is only to a point. Perhaps I'm missing something but even pre-pandemic, I don't recall going anyplace where I was forced to carry my bag for hours on end... I do like some fabric bags, coated fabric bags and occasionally even a nylon bag but being over Dooney in no way means I'm over leather for handbags... It also doesn't mean I'm remotely interested in the current child size trend in bags...

[65and fabulous]

All of these posts have me worried about Dooney; are they going out of business?  I own about 25 Dooneys, all of them purchased at GREAT prices at the Dooney outlet in Rehoboth Beach Delaware. I love them; the Florentine big satchel is my favorite. I have all seasons and all colors.

However, I just went to Rehoboth and the Dooney outlet is gone.  They closed when Covid hit, and never opened back up. The storefront is empty and the sign is gone.

I feel sad. The Dooneys shown lately on the Q are really simple and plain......all the beautiful brass rings and straps and the equestrian look I always loved has disappeared.

Very sad about this. Thank goodness for Patricia Nash! Beautiful, well made bags.

[Q4u]

Dooney was one of three East Coast leather companies that have been in business since the late 1800's crafting items for horses or riding, transforming themselves into American companies of longstanding that specialized in handcrafted leather handbags (some shoes).... Dooney & Bourke, Coach and Brahmin.

I have always had a lot of respect for these companies, until they decided (Coach and Dooney) to get as many sales as possible.  Coach was first with sales, reduced prices, outlet stores and unimanageable access to their product at most stores that sold upper end handbags.  So the public went nuts buying them!  Today Coach is trying to reassess their brand, making exclusive $600 - $900 bags!  But Coach is having trouble getting the public reinterested after such product oversaturation.  Dooney thought the Outlets were a good idea, and so did the public but they were losing their "exclusive" appeal quickly. Dooney seemed to watch what Coach had been doing and curbed their instinct.  They seemed to save most of their appeal but the public slowly got tired......  Then the very one of a kind Brahmin, which as far as I know does/did not have/had outlets.  Rarely sales.... but their product, although extremely well made doesn't vary much past the faux croc look.  A specific look, although beautiful, doesn't appeal to everyone. 

Do I think Dooney will go out of business?  No  I think they will develop more styles and keep making quality products, hopefully in America.  I also think that Coach will also stay around although I have doubts about their upper-end styles.  I also think that Brahmin will continue.  And I hope they all will manufacture here in America.

Frankly though, I think "the day of the handbag" may be over.... the rush for the exclusive, expensive handbag that can be shown off may be over or close to it.  Seems that even the allure of a Louis Vuitton doesn't seem to hold the power it once had.

JMHO  

[CJC]

I no longer carry Dooney because of the weight. I'm older and petite and Dooney is just too much bag for me. I used to have two of their nylon satchels which were better than the pebbled leather styles. These days I carry only fabric bags which work best here in Florida because they can be carried year round. Lug, Vera, Hedgren all work well for me. 

[Shanus]

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@Sooner wrote:

They aren't a hot fashion item I'd think except for older people like me. They aren't exclusive and they are a little "retro" now. 

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@Sooner   I'm 72....older...and although I like the look of the bags and admit to owning many, I think they don't go with the current casual lifestyle (& sometimes budget). I don't think when I'm wearing my nicer knit pants and a  matching cotton shirt, I'd reach for a heavy, structured Dooney. My lightweight nylon bags seem more appropriate.