Les Must de Cartier Burgundy Bordeaux Travel Case – Vintage Luxury Luggage
Les Must de Cartier, the line Cartier introduced in 1973, and my burgundy 1980s travel case with brass combination locks from a vintage market in Lucca.
Les Must de Cartier is the collection Cartier introduced in 1973. It changed how the house sold luxury. The idea was to reach a wider audience with products that kept Cartier’s quality and were more accessible than its traditional pieces. Robert Hocq and Alain-Dominique Perrin led it. They saw that the house had to move with the times and with what people wanted.
Out of it came Cartier’s first leather goods, and the Tank watch in a vermeil case. The name says what was meant: these were the Cartier things one must own.
I own a bag from Les Must de Cartier’s 1980s bag collection. It is a small travel case, which I picked up at a vintage market in Lucca.
Les Must De Cartier Vintage Travel Case
It is a 1980s piece in burgundy leather, the Bordeaux of the line: a structured shape with a roomy interior.
In the video I go through how to tell a real one from a fake. Mine is real. When I put it up for sale on Vestiaire Collective, it was verified.
It opens flat, and it closes with two gold-tone combination locks.
The double C logo is embossed in the leather on the side.
Brass clasps, a brass handle and a nameplate. That is all the decoration it has.
What to check on a Les Must de Cartier piece
- The colour. Burgundy, the Bordeaux, is the signature of the line’s leather goods.
- The logo. The double C should be crisp and evenly embossed.
- The hardware. It should feel heavy in the hand, and the locks and clasps should work.
- The stitching and the lining. Look for small, even stitches and a clean interior.
A case like this was made to be used. Keep the leather fed with a good leather cream, and store it filled with tissue so it holds its shape.
