Louis Vuitton wants to take its famed monogram to new heights. Literally. The French leather goods brand has added one of childhood’s most storied toys, the kite, to the growing list of items bearing its letters. But you might think twice about having the kids take this one for a spin at the beach. That monogram comes at quite a cost—US$10,400 (or about RM42,000) to be precise.
As you might expect for that price, Louis Vuitton has done its best to make both the kite’s design and craftsmanship topnotch quality. Originally part of the men’s spring/summer 2019 runway show, it comes packaged in a tubular vessel fashioned from monogrammed canvas with a zip closure and leather shoulder strap. The kite itself has an appropriately aerodynamic design cut from technical nylon that’s lightweight yet strong, the ideal combination for the piece to glide with ease. Whether all that justifies the hefty price tag is another question altogether.
It may not be a handbag or a trunk, but Louis Vuitton has a long history of creating unusual items with the same flair it applies to those carryalls. Founded in 1854, the brand has spent well over a century making everything from chessboards to bar accessories. More recently, the company has expanded on its canon of luxurious one-offs with its Objet Nomades collection that has a roster of top design talent imagine unique pieces which are then assembled by the Vuitton workshops.
With Virgil Abloh’s appointment as the brand’s men’s creative director, many of these projects have taken on a sporty feel, aligning with Louis Vuitton’s adventure-driven heritage. The monogrammed kite happened to be a part of Abloh’s debut show for the house. The designer has since included other utilitarian items, like sleeping bags, in his collections, all of them given a luxurious makeover.
Previously published on Robb Report.
