For those new to genuine leather, we recommend Japanese-made tote bags. What are the reasons for choosing Japanese-made bags that can't be conveyed through price and photos?

2024/02 HushTug Editorial Department

Tote bags are now used not only for everyday use but also for business purposes.

The bag you carry will change depending on your age and job, but if you are looking for something better, you might consider a "genuine leather bag" that looks stylish and is durable.

However, in this day and age when you can even change your bag online, there are an overwhelming number of options when it comes to genuine leather bags.

What's more , you will be choosing a bag from among them that you will use for the next few years, or perhaps even for the next decade.

Especially for those buying leather products for the first time, genuine leather can be expensive and they don't want to make a mistake, but they don't have the knowledge of "what kind of bag they should choose."

Be careful, especially when searching online, as it's common to make a mistake by choosing based on price or photos .

So, what criteria should you use when choosing a bag to avoid making a mistake?

To get straight to the point, we recommend that you first consider domestic brands .

"History and reliability are not the only reasons why we recommend Japanese-made genuine leather totes.

Let me introduce myself again. My name is Nakajima and I am a designer for the leather brand HushTug.

Up until now, we have made a variety of products in collaboration with factories both in Japan and overseas.

HushTug, for which I work as a designer, is now a domestically produced brand, but when it was first founded it was produced overseas.

Having experienced both overseas and Japan, I was able to learn the pros and cons of each in terms of price and quality, and I can confidently say that if I were to recommend a bag to someone new to genuine leather, it would be better to go for a Japanese-made bag .

The reasons can be mainly divided into two categories:

Because of the high quality, it is often cost-effective in the long term.
It takes skill to create beautiful designs

Let's start by looking at the first reason.

① Because the quality is good, it is often cost-effective in the long term.

Because I have been involved in bag manufacturing overseas, I do not belittle overseas-made products and believe that each has their own merits.

Naturally, the prices are low, so I think it's a great way to get people interested in leather .

However, as you can see from the graph below, the number of years they can be used is short .

The quality of the sewing and leather is inferior to that of domestically produced products, and above all, there seems to be a big difference in the knowledge and skills of the craftsmen.

In contrast , Japanese-made bags tend to be of high quality in terms of both leather and stitching, and in fact the craftsmen I use to make them have experience making bags for high-end brands and brands that are used by the Imperial Household.

These genuine leather bags are durable enough to be used for decades or more, so you are less likely to end up with a disappointing purchase like "I bought it only to have it break so quickly."

Introducing HushTug

In addition, the brand I work for, HushTug, has offered a "repair guarantee" from the start, and repairs can be made in the factory where the products are actually made.

In case of an emergency, there is also a "lifetime repair guarantee" system, so you can use the product for even longer.

②Skill is required to create beautiful designs

"Even if it's cheap and breaks easily, you can just replace it every 1-2 years."

Some people may think so, but when you're considering genuine leather in the first place, you'll probably want to choose something with a good design .

However, the beauty of the bag's design depends on the quality of the leather and the craftsman's sewing skills, so there may not be as much difference between the bag and the photos you see online as there is with domestically produced or high-end brands.

As expected, the cheaper the overseas products are, the better.

"When it arrived it was different from what I expected."

There are many reviews with this kind of feeling, so you need to be careful to avoid mistakes.

Introducing HushTug

In particular, the simpler the design, the more noticeable the distortion of the stitching is, so the more skill is required. Even if the design is simple, if the construction is rough, it often loses its sense of luxury.

The brand I work for, HushTug, has the concept of "ultimate simplicity." Thanks to the skilled craftsmen in Japan, we are able to deliver simple, high-quality tote bags.

Genuine leather tote made in Japan. The downside is...

As I have explained so far,

Because of the high quality, it is often cost-effective in the long term.
It takes skill to create beautiful designs

For these two reasons , we recommend Japanese-made leather for beginners who don't want to make a mistake.

However, since I am a designer for a domestic brand, it may seem like I am only introducing the good aspects, so I would like to also mention the disadvantages.

The downside to Japanese-made genuine leather totes is that they are not cheap .

I think you'll agree that it's cheap when you look at the long-term cost performance, but it's still a bit of a stretch to buy it compared to other types of purchases or bags that aren't made of genuine leather.

Japan's leather and sewing industries are among the best in the world in terms of quality, but they may not be suitable for those with a set budget.

HushTug is a high-quality domestic bag with a great cost performance.

Finally, let me tell you a little about HushTug, the company for which I work as a designer.

HushTug is a relatively new brand that began selling in 2019, but it has over 4,000 total reviews on its online store and has been adopted by many customers.

When we ask customers why

Extremely simple design
Made from high-quality Japanese genuine leather and sewn entirely in Japan, it's great value for money

We received many comments like this.

Actual reviews
(You can slide it sideways)

"Why is it so affordable compared to other brands, even though it's made in Japan?"

This is because HushTug manages everything from product planning to sales.

Usually, the cost of the product ends up being higher than necessary because it has to go through multiple companies, shopping malls and stores.

However, at HushTug we manage everything from planning to sales in-house, eliminating these intermediate costs as much as possible, and by selling exclusively online we are able to offer our products to customers at fair prices.

If you're still hesitant to try it out, we offer a 30-day free trial!

As mentioned earlier, HushTug products are not sold wholesale to department stores or shops, so they can basically only be purchased through their online store.

・I want to try a tote bag, but I'm not sure if it will suit me...
・I'm worried about buying online in the first place because the product might be different from what I expected.

For such people, we offer a 30-day free return or exchange policy, regardless of the reason or how much you have used the product .

The process for returning or exchanging an item is also simple. You can return or exchange an item immediately, as shown in the video below.

Since returns are free, you can never lose out, so if you're considering buying a new business bag, be sure to give it a try.