- Rimowa is best known for its sleek aluminum luggage that starts at $1,430.
- The suitcase maker is one of LVMH's fastest-growing brands.
HBO's hit TV series "Entourage" has had a big influence on John Baptist's life.
The show ended in 2011. But it's one of the reasons he, 36, moved to Los Angeles — and why he's dropped about $5,800 to buy three Rimowa suitcases.
If you don't recognize the brand's name, you might know its iconic grooved aluminum luggage.
The cheapest model goes for $1,430, while the largest rings in at $2,450. There are also more niche variations, like a 12-wine bottle suitcase, which costs $9,900, and a new $2,125 cross-body bag.
Despite —or maybe because of — its price, Rimowa's shiny four-wheeled bags are now a common sight in the overhead bins of business-class cabins and airport lounges.
But when "Entourage" was still on the air, the show's characters and celebrities were the only people Baptist saw toting the industrial-chic bags. (These days, icons like Martha Stewart, Rodger Federer, and Billie Eilish are fans too.)
It's what lured him — a lifestyle content creator and real estate flipper — to the brand and why he eventually "splurged" to buy his first Rimowa, the $2,175 aluminum trunk, about 1 ½ years ago, he told BI.
He's since purchased a second trunk for his girlfriend and a $1,430 carry-on luggage for himself.
"This is a status symbol for me," Baptist said. "It's the same thing as my Goyard wallet. I achieved purchasing it, and it's a necessity for me now."
LVMH acquired the now-126-year-old German company in 2016
Rimowa may not be as talked about as LVMH's 74 other iconic brands like Fendi, Louis Vuitton, or Tiffany and Co., but it certainly holds its ground in Bernard Arnault's world of luxury.
LVMH's revenue dipped just over 1% in the first half of 2024 amid a slowdown in demand for luxury goods in China. But Rimowa continued "excellent momentum," LVMH said.
A spokesperson told Business Insider that the luggage maker is now one of its parent company's fastest-growing brands. It has expanded its presence from Europe and Asia into North America, with the US now one of its top markets.
German engineering — luggage style
Rimowa gave rise to two of the largest hard-shelled luggage trends when it debuted its aluminum luggage in the 1920s and its polycarbonate options eighty years later.
Since then, myriad competitors like Away, Samsonite, and Tumi have unveiled similar styles — most for a fraction of Rimowa's price.
With other options on the market, you might wonder why it's worth splurging on a suitcase that costs double that of a flight to Europe. After all, Rimowa's iconic bags were absent from Good Housekeeping, Travel and Leisure, and Wirecutter's 2024 best luggage lists.
To understand why they've become a cult classic, its biggest fans say you have to try one of these bags for yourself. And it's fine if they break — Rimowa offers a lifetime warranty.
Rimowa's 3 Ws: Wheels, warranty, and wear
Tania Antonenkova, a Miami-based luxury content creator and self-described "Birkin woman," said Rimowa is the sole reason she can't boycott LVMH as she'd like to.
Antonenkova, 32, has been a loyal Rimowa collector for five years. She estimates she and her husband have purchased more than 17 of its suitcases. "It's literally a closet full of Rimowa," she told BI, noting that she's spent about $6,000 on the company.
Antonenkova flies two to three times a month and goes on at least three long-haul flights a year, often for work (in tech sales). She generally sticks to the polycarbonate Rimowas — the iconic aluminum ones are heavier, have broken her nails, and snag her purses and clothes.
She believes the quality of Rimowa's products declined after LVMH acquired the company. Still, no other luggage maker can compare to its quality, comfort, and convenience.
"When you travel a lot, you want it to be as pain-free and hassle-free as possible," Antonenkova said, noting that she's partial to Rimowa's interior compartments and wheels.
It's a sentiment other fans share.
Carter Smith, 19, told BI that he considers the wheels on his months-old Rimowa aluminum carry-on "the best in the industry." The bag's durability, auto-close handle, and status symbol title have also been big positives.
Smith, a consumer tech content creator, travels two to three times a month. He doesn't consider himself a luxury traveler — he's more of a "try to get an exit row" than a first-class or comfort-plus flyer, according to his TikTok review of the luggage.
The thought of buying a high-end suitcase had never crossed his mind. That is, until he spotted a Rimowa in the wild (Las Vegas) two years ago, a moment he remembers vividly.
He thought the shiny luggage looked cooler than his previous one from Away. And while he called the cost of his new suitcase "a little insane" — $1,550 after tax and shipping — he decided to max out his credit card for the purchase.
However, his sentiment on travel splurges remains the same: "I'm walking to the back of the plane with my beat-up Crocs, my $2 Haines t-shirt, and my Rimowa," Smith told BI.
Fitting for a tech guy, he did note that his bag is not as technologically advanced as other luggage options. There are no integrated chargers, for example, and the lock on his suitcase is manual.
However, he has no complaints — it's "timeless."
Rimowa creates its products with a 'design to be repaired ethos'
Rimowa's decision to offer a lifetime warranty on products purchased after July 2022 "put a new level of urgency on achieving repairability," Bonnet-Masimbert told BI. "If you offer a lifetime guarantee, any break is a cost to your company."
According to Rimowa's CEO, the company analyzes the repairs it performs every week and tweaks the design to prevent future incidents.
The warranty policy and quick repairs have greatly benefited travelers like Vanessa Garoute, a 30-year-old Los Angeles-based hairstylist. Drawn to the durability and sleekness of Rimowa, she has purchased six pieces — three for herself and three for her boyfriend — since 2017.
She now considers herself a lifelong Rimowa customer.
Garoute has considered competitors like Béis and Away. But once Rimowa implemented its lifetime warranty, "it was over," she said. "Rimowa won."
And for good reason — she's had two of her carry-on Rimowas repaired, once after her 10-year-old aluminum one cracked on a flight back from France and another after an airline broke a wheel off of her "essential lite" luggage.
The Rimowa store fixed the former in five minutes — despite her having purchased it before the lifetime warranty policy went into effect — and gave her a new suitcase for the latter.
"The amount of money people spend in replacing their luggage all the time, they might as well just invest in one that will repair itself," Garoute told BI. "Yes, it's expensive when you swipe your card, but after that, you'll never swipe it again."
Just don't bring your luggage in for repairs when it inevitably gets scuffed up.
Rimowa's CEO said he would rather see his products scratched up — or, as he said, "carrying the scars of all the travels" — than in pristine condition.
Think of it as "Jane Birkinifying" your luggage. The more you've traveled and beat it up, the better — even if you end up "hyper-fixating on every little piece of damage" on your more than $1,500 purchase, as Smith said.
"People on social media are really mean about Rimowa," Garoute said. "But I don't know any Rimowa lovers who don't buy more than one. I will have them for the rest of my life."