Making a Better Work Bag

Like one of his heroes, Ralph Lauren, Jacques-Elliott founder Elliot Aronow started by making the perfect tie. Now, the burgeoning New York-based lifestyle brand is expanding and looking to make the perfect bag. One that that's tough enough for travel, slick enough for the office, and smart enough to tackle all the gear necessary for a 21st century life. "It's so hard to find a bag that's super stylish on the outside but also really functional," says Aronow. "A lot of up market bags looked great, but had very little in ways of features."

The Slimline Commuter bag

The Slimline Commuter bag

Before the brand kicked off their Kickstarter campaign to fund the production of the bags, Jacques-Elliott lent us one to test out. We got to take it on a quick business trip and simply carry it to and from work for about a week or so. What we found was that no detail was overlooked. The Slimline Commuter bag is the ultimate daily carry-all, complete with simple storage solutions lining the interior of the bag—from a padded laptop and tablet sleeve to hooks for your keys or pockets for chargers, cards or glasses. The handsome, logo-free exterior is cut from hardwearing and waterproof cotton canvas in neutral tones that complement most men's wardrobes. We really appreciated the soft leather-wrapped straps, which are easy on the hands and also long enough to be pulled onto your shoulder when you need two free hands. (There's also a removable shoulder strap included.)

"Everything that goes into the bag reflects my bohemian bon vivant values, ya know?" says Aronow. "Buy less stuff, but buy the best stuff you can afford and use it forever and ever. I think we all want to have relationships with the stuff we own. That's what makes our stuff special." We couldn't agree more.