Londoners Dress the Best in Summer—6 Bag Trends You’ll See Everywhere This Year

Some cities instantly conjure an image of impeccable style, and London is one of them, with brands like Coach outfitting the best-dressed locals who call The Big Smoke home. However, compared to New York’s penchant for minimalism and Paris’s reputation as the birthplace of couture, London shines as the place to do the best bag-watching.

Covetable accessories are synonymous with the city, and Coach has delivered countless styles that make the list, including the Cashin Carry, which was a book-style tote launched in 1969 by then-creative director Bonnie Cashin. Since then, the current artistic lead, Stuart Vevers, has continued this reputation as an American brand built on heritage, craftspersonship and excellence, with every bag it releases more desirable than the next. Of course, one look at the most stylish people in London and you’ll instantly recognise how this brand resonates with agenda-defining dressers.

Indeed, it’s hard to move from west to east without seeing a Coach bag dangle from a tastemaker’s shoulder or burrowed into the elbow crook of a trendsetter. Coach has an intimate understanding of how a bag should seamlessly fit into a stylish person’s fast-paced life, evidenced by the fact that some of the most successful Coach bags are named after iconic regions of New York City (the brand’s birthplace), including the Empire carry-all, Bleecker bucket bag and, of course, the Tabby.

When you’re constantly on the move, you don’t need something that holds you back. Quite the opposite, in fact; you need something that works with the bustling energy of a city always on the go. Coach bags perfectly achieve this concept, whilst also doing a lot of heavy lifting in making any ensemble they’re paired with more effortlessly elegant. Relaxed, refined and reliable is a hard balance to strike, but Coach does it with aplomb.

Still, Coach has considered the fact that a city as diverse and eccentric as London will have inhabitants looking for different things in their bags. As countless celebrity ambassadors and stylish customers attest, Coach is the ultimate vehicle for self-expression. Each bag acts as a canvas for you to create whatever you want, whether more prim and minimalist like the Notting Hill darlings, or more edgy and experimental, like the Islington set. Coach makes fashion people of us all, and there’s certainly an iconic bag for everyone.

So, how do you know which Coach bag suits you best and will see you through every occasion you have on the horizon this summer? That comes down to the well-crafted designs. Keep scrolling for our breakdown.

1. Coach Tabby Bag

The Coach Tabby is the true cultural mainstay. A staple in the fashion world, it has graced the industry’s most prestigious outings, including elite events like the Met Gala and the Cannes Film Festival. Still, despite its prestige and pedigree, it’s more accessible than you’d think. A modern take on an archival 1970s design, the Tabby features a boxy shape, top handle and iconic "C" clasp closure. All in all, it proves that great style never fades.

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2. Coach Brooklyn Bag

The Coach Brooklyn is the ultimate everyday bag, made to take you from the office to after-work drinks and into the weekends, ensuring you always look effortlessly put-together and feel confident on every outing. With its slouchy design, sophisticated simplicity and easy-to-carry silhouette, it’s a modern take on Coach’s first tote. It's timeless, versatile and completely designed for the way we live today.

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3. Coach Empire Bag

The Coach Empire is a personal favourite of mine, especially as a Londoner who constantly looks to New Yorkers for style inspiration. Influenced by NYC, the bag feels truly vintage with its roomy, open compartment, curved shape and generously sized interior. It sits somewhere between a bowling bag and a doctor’s bag, making it a true classic and almost antique-feeling, despite its beautiful texture and soft feel, keeping it incredibly contemporary.

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4. Coach Bleecker Bag

The Coach Bleecker bag has an undeniably sophisticated New York attitude. And no, that’s not just because it’s named after the iconic street in Greenwich Village. Innocuous, cool and spacious, it’s a minimalist's dream, with clean lines, a spacious compartment, an inside snap pocket and a convenient removable zip pouch to organise small essentials.

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5. Coach Plaza Bag

Coach describes the Plaza bag as "a little bag with limitless possibilities." With space enough to carry only the bare necessities, this style is a go-anywhere design, from aperitivo hours to late nights out, morning coffees and everything in between.

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6. Coach Chelsea Bag

Another style of note, since we’re here anyway, is the Chelsea bag, which feels like the grown-up, older sister of the Coach Tabby. Featuring the same top flap, it’s effortlessly cool with a laid-back sophistication and finished with a comfortable shoulder strap and a secure pushlock closure, quite similar to the borough it shares its name with.

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In London, you never know what’s around the next corner, which is why it’s vital to arm yourself with something that can suit every occasion. Coach’s collection of city-inspired bags does this and more. The Bleecker bag, for instance, is the perfect shopping tote to store anything without feeling weighed down. The Empire, meanwhile, is a statement piece; a style you’ll marvel at and take in its statuesque form. The Chelsea is as cool and envy-inducing as the people who have resided in the neighbourhood, from Carolyn Besette Kennedy to Patti Smith. This is because Coach bags are designed to be lived in and well-loved—an indispensable part of any well-edited wardrobe.

This season especially, I’ve noticed that Coach bags feel more relevant than ever. For spring/summer 2026, there's been an uptick in oversized shapes that can take you from day to night; both the Brooklyn and the Empire do this with ease. We've also seen more bags in sumptuous fabrics like suede, grained and nappa leather, which Coach has used since its inception in 1941, so you know that each piece is incredibly well-made with only the finest materials. The Coach Tabby is a true testament to craftspersonship, demonstrating something made to accompany you season after season.

There’s a saying that it’s New York or nowhere, but I’d have to argue that actually, it’s a New York-inspired bag or nothing. And nowhere does this resonate more than in London.

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