The Time for TUMI Is Now
Presenting itself as a lifestyle brand and opening its first APAC flagship store in Tokyo.
TUMI is looking to make this era theirs. Since the launch of the brand’s 19 Degree collection in 2016, TUMI has been turning heads with this sleek and premium offering. “If you look at the history of the brand, our heritage is in innovation and evolution,” recalls Victor Sanz, TUMI’s Global Creative Director. “When the founder created the brand, he was always focused on making the customers’ lives easier. And as the brand has continued to evolve past the functionality, durability and quality it has traditionally been known for, the focus turned towards showcasing the beauty of innovation.”
This is yet another step in TUMI’s evolution as it grows beyond travel into a lifestyle brand. “It’s about continuing to drive forward, to move the needle, not just for TUMI, the brand, but also the industry. It’s about presenting TUMI as a lifestyle brand — we’re so much more than just a travel brand.” says Sanz. “We’ve evolved our 19 Degree Aluminum collection into everyday lifestyle pieces, we’ve launched a range of fragrances and we’re about to launch a brand new golf collection, for example. Why is that? Because our customers are always on the go, and they have a life beyond business. We want to help them perform in every possible way.”
“We’ve always been known for our innovative materials, be it Tegris or our ballistic nylon. When we started getting into aluminum, which is a material that has been used in the industry for a while, we asked ourselves how can we create our own design language and what is it that we want to say?,” continues Sanz. “This was when we started looking at the brand from another perspective, knowing that we don’t want to change the DNA of each collection, but evolve its aesthetics.”
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
Tumi Omotesando Store
TUMI has just opened its first Asia-Pacific flagship store in Tokyo’s Omotesando, which marks the beginning of this next chapter for the brand. “Tokyo has always been a fashion leader, a city that’s living in the future and one that’s inspired the world. For us, Tokyo is a cultural hub and one of the key cities in the world,” Sanz tells Hypebeast. “And it’s a bit of a nostalgic moment for us, as Japan was the first market we opened in the APAC region over two decades ago. We wanted to celebrate that as we head towards our 50th anniversary in 2025.”
Now as the brand approaches its fifth decade, it looks to create more impact — more accurately lasting impact — with its consumers. This is its second flagship store in the world, with the first being in Manhattan; and TUMI is looking to make these flagships a destination for existing and new customers, where every new store is grounded in TUMI’s DNA, but is locally-unique at the same time. It’s never the same experience, as there’s always something to check out no matter where you visit.
TUMI’s Omotesando flagship store features a completely unique design inspired by the 19 Degree collection, with curved aluminum fins that scale the exterior walls and interior pillars. The centerpiece artwork is the TUMI 19 Degree Aluminum Sculpture, created by perceptual art pioneer Michael Murphy, that changes from a “T” to a 19 Degree case as you walk around it, and reflects light in the most unpredictable ways.
“All this was conceptualized and built remotely in about 10 months,” Sanz mentions. “It was a bit of a challenge, but a fresh challenge for us, and we were able to do things that we’ve never done before. We had never built and installed columns that we machined with aluminum spanning 20 feet. Then there’s the artwork — how does someone process this in their head? You go from chaos to clarity then back to chaos then back to clarity.” Murphy then adds, “I feel like the store itself is an artwork. From the outside it looks like a sculpture that you can step into, so it was a real pleasure to be part of the entire experience.”
Perceptual Artist Michael Murphy And Tumi’s Global Creative Director Victor Sanz
Having been around for 48 years, TUMI is no stranger to the challenges of respecting tradition while keeping up with the times, but the team at TUMI is not afraid of change. Sanz is always engaging with the customer, and constantly brewing up an idea storm on how he can evolve his designs to meet their changing needs. “Not only are we talking to that business traveler, but that fashion culture traveler, and even that next generation where the CEOs are gamers, world travelers, fashionistas, and culture creators. We want to be by their side as they’re pursuing their passions — and that’s what this first Asia-Pacific flagship store is all about.”
And Sanz, who created the 19 Degree collection tells us its origin story, “I wanted to create something that was engineered, but also aesthetically beautiful. I wanted to create a material and a pattern that your eye would flow completely around, where there wasn’t just this one front face. With each 19 Degree piece, you can see how the pattern wraps around continuously, yet what the ribs are actually doing is adding additional strength to the case. If we were doing this just with flat aluminum, it would bend and dent and become very unstable. As I went through the design process, I was looking at all the angles as they were flowing through; when I finally got to 19 degrees, I could see that my eye was traveling throughout the piece and it found the perfect balance between that engineered side and the aesthetic side.”
But with so much emphasis on aesthetics, would form ever be more important than function for TUMI? “The way we started looking at it was that form is a function,” Sanz simply puts. “We spend a lot of time studying our customers and how they are performing — and we talk about TUMI being a performance luxury brand. It’s not only about the performance of the product, but how our customers perform when they use our product and if they are performing at a higher level.” Sanz continues, “The other part was that if you feel confident in how you look and how you’re showing up, you are also performing better. For many years, we were looking at pure function, and not that the aesthetics took a secondary seat, but it definitely wasn’t viewed as part of how the customers perform. Now we feel that function and aesthetics are equal, and not mutually exclusive.”
“So Murphy, what does TUMI mean to you?” Hypebeast asks, to which the artist replies, ”Thoughtful, durable and beautiful.” And having spent time learning about and experiencing TUMI with Victor Sanz, who is as personable as he is capable, we couldn’t agree more.
Scroll down below for Hypebeast’s top three TUMI picks.
TUMI 19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On In Matte Black, Dark Denim, Silver, Texture Forest Green And Texture Blush
The problem with most aluminum carry-ons as compared to their fabric counterparts is that they lack an easy access compartment where one can store their laptop for quick access when going through airport security. With TUMI’s 19 Degree Aluminum International Carry-On, its smooth unlock system allows you to easily roll open the case while upright. Inside, items are kept securely in place thanks to zipped up covers, which also sport diagonal zipped pockets. These are large enough to store most laptops, which can be easily removed and placed back inside.
TUMI 19 Degree Aluminum Backpack
19 Degree Aluminum Backpack In Silver
19 Degree Aluminum Backpack In Silver
19 Degree Aluminum Backpack In Silver
19 Degree Aluminum Backpack In Silver
19 Degree Aluminum Backpack In Silver
I know what you’re thinking: this looks like a jet pack, and does it actually look cool to carry? Admittedly, not everyone can pull off the TUMI 19 Degree Aluminum Backpack, but it’s just so interesting that we had to include it in our picks. The backpack is extremely functional and easy to use. It opens and locks easily and stays upright on its own allowing full access to your belongings. It also has a push-open front pocket so you can stash your quick grab items without opening the main compartment. This piece is a definite head-turner.
TUMI Alpha Double Expansion Travel Satchel
Alpha Double Expansion Travel Satchel In Black
Alpha Double Expansion Travel Satchel In Black
Alpha Double Expansion Travel Satchel In Black
Alpha Double Expansion Travel Satchel In Black
It’s tricky finding the perfect travel duffle, but TUMI’s Double Expansion Satchel from its Alpha 3 collection comes real close. It has a fixed base and soft body, so it has just the right amount of structure where it holds your belongings well but also comfortably wraps around your back when slung across the shoulder. And as its name suggests, it is incredibly roomy and can hold more than enough for a weekend trip or all that extra shopping. The strap is also really comfortable when carrying a full bag, and sports a generous front pocket for quick access to essentials.
Hypebeast was a guest of TUMI at its Tokyo flagship store opening.
