The DeMellier New York Tote Survived Nine Months of Daily Commuting Without a Single Scratch. I Went to See Why.

I've been dismissing DeMellier for about two years. Every time the DeMellier New York tote showed up on my feed, looking impossibly structured and clean, I'd think, "cute bag, probably falls apart in six months." I lumped it in with every other direct-to-consumer brand that photographs beautifully and disintegrates on contact with a subway turnstile.

My friend Éloise is the one who started chipping away at that. She's a corporate attorney in Boston who owns exactly four bags, all of which she's researched like she's preparing for cross-examination. She bought the DeMellier New York tote in black small grain leather last spring and has been quietly, annoyingly, bringing it up ever since. Not in a pushy way. More like she'd set it on the table at dinner and I'd notice how it still looked brand new after nine months of daily commuting. The triangular fold at the base wasn't warped. The hardware wasn't scratched. The organic cotton lining inside was still white.

I finally asked her how much it cost. She said $695.

Look, I know that's not cheap. But I'd just come from writing about The Row Margaux, which runs $2,390 to $3,990 for a bag that, honestly, doesn't fit a laptop nearly as well. And the DeMellier fits a 16-inch laptop. That detail alone kind of stopped me.

So What Actually Is DeMellier?

DeMellier is a London-based handbag brand founded by Mireia Llusia-Lindh, a Barcelona-born, Harvard MBA graduate who spent nearly 20 years at Bain & Company advising luxury clients including Burberry and Loewe. The brand started as Milli Millu before rebranding in 2017 after winning the Walpole Brand of Tomorrow award. The name itself is personal: "De" references her grandmother's Spanish aristocratic lineage spanning over 500 years, and "Mellier" comes from her French heritage.

All bags are designed in London and handcrafted in Spain and Italy using LWG gold-rated Italian leather. Prices start around $355 for the Montreal nano crossbody and top out around $745 for the Florence woven tote. Every purchase funds vaccines and medical treatments for children through SOS Children's Villages, and they've hit over 2,000,000 treatments funded. The headquarters runs with a 90% female team, and every bag comes with lifetime repairs.

That lifetime repair thing is what Éloise kept emphasizing. She's like that.

Is DeMellier Actually a Luxury Brand?

This is one of the most searched questions about DeMellier, and I get why. The answer is kind of complicated. DeMellier occupies the "accessible luxury" tier. It's not a heritage house and doesn't carry the brand recognition of Chanel or Hermès. But the materials and construction are genuinely closer to luxury than to contemporary.

Here's how it stacks up:

The DeMellier New York tote alone involves 34 artisans and 38 individual leather pieces. Independent leather expert Tanner Leatherstein, who has over a million TikTok followers for his luxury bag teardowns, reviewed the DeMellier Vancouver and confirmed genuine high-quality construction with durable materials.

Though I should mention, not every review is glowing. An independent bag-maker called The Leather Crafter was less impressed with the Montreal's stitching and hardware, calling the leather "plasticky." So quality might vary between styles, which is actually useful to know.

The DeMellier New York Tote: Why Everyone Keeps Talking About It

Okay, the New York. This is DeMellier's flagship and I understand why.

At $695, you get a structured tote with the brand's signature triangular fold detail, double top handles with a 7.8-inch shoulder drop, and an interior that fits up to a 16-inch laptop. It weighs 1,000 grams in leather, comes in about a dozen colors, has gold-plated hardware with metal feet, and is lined in 100% organic cotton.

Katie Holmes was spotted carrying the mocha suede version in November 2025. Emily Ratajkowski too, same month. Multiple Who What Wear editors are documented fans.

My colleague Vittorio, who somehow always knows about bags before anyone else does (he once bought his wife a Polène Numéro Dix before it had a waitlist, which is the kind of thing that makes me feel like I'm bad at paying attention), told me last month that the DeMellier New York tote is the bag he keeps recommending to people who ask him for "a work bag that doesn't scream work bag."

He's not wrong. The small grain leather hides scratches well and develops a subtle patina over time. This is not a bag you baby. It is a bag you use. At $695, if you carry it three times a week for three years, that's $1.48 per wear. Five times a week for three years drops it to $0.89. Compare that to a Celine tote at $2,350, which works out to about $5.02 per wear at the same rate.

The Midi New York ($595) is the scaled-down version with tubular handles. Fits an 11-inch iPad but NOT a 13-inch laptop. Crossbody strap drops to 19.3 inches. Takes 35 artisans and 40 individual pieces. There's also a New York Shoulder starting around $495 that launched as part of the S/S 2026 suede lineup.

The Stockholm: The Bag Fashion Editors Won't Stop Posting

This one launched late 2025 and Who What Wear already called it "the bag of 2026." It's a modern bowling bag shape with soft curved lines, a central zip, and elongated handles designed for comfortable shoulder wear.

$640 in fine grain leather, $670 in suede. Fits up to a 14-inch laptop. Side tabs unfasten with snap buttons to increase capacity, which is genuinely clever. The black fine grain sold out immediately.

My friend Astrid saw it at Copenhagen Fashion Week street style and sent me 11 voice notes at 2am about it. She's Swedish, which means she approached the whole thing with this very measured enthusiasm, like "I think this might be quite good" when what she meant was she was obsessed. The Stockholm comes in three sizes. The Midi Stockholm runs around $570 in suede, and the Small Stockholm is around $495 as a crossbody.

The Hudson: Kate Middleton's DeMellier Pick

The Hudson is a structured top-handle with expandable side panels and DeMellier's belted strap with gold-plated lock. Kate Middleton has been photographed with the Small Hudson multiple times. Princess Beatrice is also a documented wearer.

For S/S 2026, DeMellier released the Hudson in berry red suede, capitalizing on the red trend from Celine, Chanel, and Loewe runways. Grazia confirmed in a February 2026 hands-on review that the larger Hudson could be "the next bag Kate Middleton steps out wearing."

It comes in three sizes. The full Hudson fits up to a 13-inch laptop plus two phone pockets, weighing 1,100 grams. The Midi Hudson, made from 42 individually cut leather pieces, fits a 10.2-inch iPad. And the Small Hudson at 435 grams fits a 6.7-inch phone and comes with a crossbody strap. Prices range from approximately $425 for the Small to around $640 for the full size.

The Florence, The Santorini, and Everything Else

The Florence is new for S/S 2026 and already generating buzz. Who What Wear called it an insider hit and Grazia's hands-on review confirmed it as a serious work bag contender. It's constructed from 52 individual leather pieces, with each woven panel formed from 20 components interlaced by hand. Fits a 14-inch laptop. Comes in at around $745, making it the most expensive non-limited DeMellier style.

The Santorini ($475) is a handwoven raffia basket bag made in Morocco from natural palm leaves with Italian leather trim. Very much a seasonal piece, but the DeMellier Santorini raffia basket bag is their only style not made in Europe, which makes it stylistically distinct from everything else in the collection.

Then there's the Vancouver at $460 from Nordstrom, which is the model Tanner Leatherstein actually tore down on TikTok. The Montreal at $355 is the entry point. And styles like the Marrakesh ($355), Genova ($395), Verona ($425), Siena ($535), and the Midi Los Angeles ($480) fill out the collection.

If you're looking at brands like DeMellier in this accessible luxury space, Polène Paris ($400 to $760) is the closest competitor. They're French, handcrafted in Ubrique, Spain, and LVMH recently acquired a minority stake, which has driven 15 to 20 percent price increases in 2025. Strathberry ($300 to $700) from Scotland is another option, also made in Spain, with a more geometric aesthetic. Kate Middleton has carried both, which is kind of funny when you think about it. Aspinal of London ($250 to $650) rounds out the British accessible luxury space, though their production split between Italy and other locations is less transparent.

The Resale Question (I'm Going to Be Honest)

DeMellier bags do NOT hold their value the way Chanel or Hermès bags do. On The RealReal, they're listed at roughly 5 to 20 percent below retail. A leather tote that retails at $695 was listed at $660. Smaller crossbodies showed closer to 20 percent discounts.

For context, if you're buying for investment value, this isn't the brand. But that's true of the entire accessible luxury category. Polène and Strathberry face similar resale markdowns.

Colette, who works in finance and tracks the resale value of literally everything she owns (she has a spreadsheet, I've seen it), told me she doesn't care about DeMellier resale because the cost-per-wear math already works. She carries her New York tote five days a week and she's at about $0.89 per wear after less than two years.

She has a point.

Where to Actually Find a DeMellier Store

If you're searching for a DeMellier store, here's the reality: they don't have standalone retail stores yet. The brand's first physical retail presence was a concession at Le Bon Marché in Paris back in 2018. In December 2025, they announced their first-ever London flagship opening Autumn 2026.

For now, the main channel is demellierlondon.com, which ships to over 30 countries with free shipping, free returns within 28 days, and all US duties included. Authorized stockists include Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, Harrods, Selfridges, Liberty London, and Farfetch.

DeMellier rarely runs direct sales, but past-season styles do show up on Saks OFF 5TH at significant discounts. Farfetch occasionally includes them in sitewide sales too.

The Part Where I Don't Fully Commit

I went to Nordstrom last week to see a DeMellier New York tote in person. Held it. Put my laptop in it. Walked around the accessories floor for ten minutes pretending I was going somewhere.

It's a really good bag.

I didn't buy it.

Not because anything was wrong with it. The leather felt substantial, the structure held, the hardware was clean. But I'm still kind of stuck on whether I need ANOTHER black tote, which is my problem, not the bag's problem. Astrid keeps texting me photos of the Stockholm in dark taupe and honestly she might win eventually.

If you're someone who wants luxury-quality leather, ethical production, and a bag that genuinely works for daily life without spending $2,000 plus, DeMellier makes a lot of sense. If you're buying for resale value or brand recognition, look elsewhere. These bags don't carry logo power. They carry laptops. The Toteme T-Lock occupies a similar quiet luxury space if you want something with a slightly different aesthetic. And designer clutch bags are a completely different conversation, but worth exploring if you're building a collection.

What about you? Have you tried DeMellier, or are you still on the fence like me?

Frequently Asked Questions

Is DeMellier a luxury brand?

DeMellier sits in the accessible luxury tier. Materials and construction rival luxury houses, but pricing runs 60 to 80 percent lower than designers like Celine or The Row. Think luxury quality at a non-luxury price point.

Are DeMellier bags made in China?

No. All bags are handcrafted in Spain and Italy. Leather is sourced exclusively from Italian tanneries. The Santorini raffia bags are woven in Morocco with Italian leather trim.

Does DeMellier ever go on sale?

DeMellier doesn't typically discount directly. But past-season styles do appear on Saks OFF 5TH at up to 70 percent off, and select styles may show up during Farfetch sitewide sales.

What is DeMellier's return policy?

Free returns within 28 days. Free worldwide shipping on US orders. All import duties and tariffs included. Complimentary monogramming. Lifetime repairs on all bags.

Where are DeMellier stores located?

No standalone stores currently exist. The brand announced its first London flagship opening Autumn 2026. Available online at demellierlondon.com and through Nordstrom, Saks, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, Harrods, Selfridges, Liberty London, and Farfetch.

How does DeMellier compare to Polène?

Both brands occupy the accessible luxury tier with similar pricing ($355 to $745 for DeMellier, $400 to $760 for Polène). DeMellier is London-based with production in Spain and Italy. Polène is Parisian, produced in Ubrique, Spain, and recently received LVMH minority investment which has pushed prices up 15 to 20 percent. DeMellier's New York tote is more practical for daily commuting, while Polène leans more sculptural and fashion-forward.