This Stylish 48-Hour Bag May Be the Last Weekender You Ever Buy

Rarely, if ever, does the term “It Bag” crop up in menswear circles. Yet there I was, during the Valextra presentation at Milan Fashion Week in January, watching guy after guy gravitate towards the same deceptively simple white bag. And I now get it. Designer tote bags are a dime a dozen, often shapeless and devoid of logos, so they are virtually indistinguishable. Getting yourself—and your stuff—between the gym, the office, and the weekend place in style can be tricky, and in the absence of intelligent design in most of the available options on the market, you’ve basically got yourself one big black hole—good luck locating your keys.

The secret to success? A holdall built to look good and function smartly, no matter where your days off take you. Enter Valextra’s well-appointed $4,300 Avietta 48-hour bag, a classic silhouette that debuted over 60 years ago. This season, it has been updated in an off-white leather, providing an ideal blank canvas waiting to be filled with your essentials. One side is all business, featuring the tech-friendly pockets you’d expect in a good attaché case. The other boasts a roomy interior for clothing, shoes, and toiletries. But the decidedly modern design also has the attention to detail you can only find in old-school luggage: leather straps to buckle in the contents, a coordinating packing cube, and a handy removable strap. The gathering crowd was particularly entranced with the weighty, sculptural zipper pulls, which seemed to glide so much better than your standard-issue hardware. If you want one, we’d advise you to place a pre-order. It’ll be hitting stores in a few weeks, and we wouldn’t be surprised to see a waitlist.

If you’re happy with your current keepall—or just don’t want to lug that much stuff around with you every day—Valextra has plenty of other stylish ways to tote what you need in style. But it’s not all wallets and dopp kits. In partnership with The Vault by Robb Report, the company will create a custom cocktail box, complete with two glasses and a shaker, spoon, cocktail tongs, and jigger made from silvered bronze. Like the Avietta 48 Hour Bag, it’s crafted from calf leather, but the color is up to you. What further sets it apart is an exclusive partnership with mixologist Maurizio Stocchetto, owner of Milan’s storied Bar Basso, who’ll consult on how to make your cocktails sing. We’ll drink to that.