The Rebranding of “The Tote Bag”

By Cierra Morgan

Marc Jacobs recently generated a new buzz around "The Tote Bag," an iconic handbag line first released in 2019.

In preparation for Marc Jacobs's Fall 2023 runway collection, the eponymous designer, Marc Jacobs himself, revamped the branding of "The Tote Bag" by pumping out alternate versions of the original with new designs, more versatile materials and a wider variety of shapes and sizes.

Since Marc Jacobs has been on the market for quite some time now, the brand has a sound idea of its target consumer and customer incentives. The brand sought to further its marketing strategies this fall by using multi-platform approaches to help increase consumer rates for the new runway collection.

Jacobs began to draw upon multi-platform strategies by bringing in a Los Angeles-based creative studio, PLAYLAB, INC., to help design recent campaigns. In the past, PLAYLAB, INC. has collaborated with other designers, celebrities, and artists such as Adidas, Bruno Mars and Christoper Wool to create inventive marketing exhibits. Their latest, released this August, features Kim Kardashian holding “The Tote Bag.” Photographer Tyrone Lebon and stylist Alastair McKimm partnered with PLAYLAB, INC. to create images of Kim relaxing on a pile of balloons wearing a black bustier top, pencil skirt and white Kiki boots. The star of the photoshoot is the mini white tote bag that Kim clutches, contrasting her polka-dot gloves. Jacobs is infamous for having popular actresses, models, and other cultural icons as the face of his campaigns.

Although Jacobs utilizes high celebrity profiles as the face of his promotional campaigns, his pricing strategy attracts a more diverse range of consumers by employing a product range of under $30 to over $125, according to MBA Skool. Marc Jacobs and PLAYLAB, INC. collaborated again in September to create an inflatable tote bag pop-up store in New York City. The pop-up resembled a building-size version of “The Tote Bag” in New York’s trendy Lower East Side.

Following Jacobs's campaigns, he dropped his fall 2023 runway collection featuring a new line of "The Tote Bag," all resembling the mini white tote bag as clutched by Kim. The newest collection features small leather tote bags, including a unique polka dot design, as foreshadowed in the campaign. Prior to the recent tote bag campaign the bag had yet to be minimized in size in the one Kim is clutching. Additionally “The Tote Bag” explored a wider range of materials in the new campaign with the minimized bags including monogram metallic and leather both of which speak to the rebranding of the style the bag will now portray to buyers.

By amplifying his collaborations and campaigns this fall, Jacobs reimagined his brand to consumer connections for "The Tote Bag' audience while exploring ways to make the old new again with the surprise of spin-off materials and designs. Jacobs scouted for the public's interest in the new additions to his line of tote bags by easing his audience into the ideas he had in store, a marketing tactic practiced to produce quick trial runs of ideas for gauging audience resonance.

Following Marc Jacobs’ marketing moves this fall, "The Tote Bag" has expanded its audience to the markets of PLAYLAB, INC., and Kim Kardashian in coexistence with Jacobs's current target audience, impacting the brand's overall growth of "The Tote Bag" sales in the fall 2023 fashion looks.