I bought my first Coach bag back in 1988. It was quite an investment with the small salary I was making at the time.  Even as a kid, I was always interested in the handbag versus the shoes.  Over the years, my Coach collection grew.  Over the last few years, I started noticing that the quality of the Coach purses had been declining while the costs were increasing.  You used to be able to find a good bargain at their outlet store, but these days it’s mostly cheaper bags made just for the outlet store (not high quality bags with small defects).

A friend offered to trade a Brahmin Lindy bag for a Coach bag I rarely used.  We did the deal, and I was unexpectedly pleased with the Brahmin–its high quality manufacturing, organizational details, and functionality. The alligator look garnered many compliments.

Slowly, my Brahmin collection has grown and my Coach collection is being auctioned on eBay one-by-one.  I recently bought another Brahmin Medium Arno Tote in a light color for summer. This tote has proved to be the perfect bag for my needs–it’s lightweight but big enough to carry all the essentials even my iPad Mini (or Air).

I did peruse the Coach collection and didn’t see one bag that interested me.  They all seemed of low quality and cost a lot more than the Brahmins.  Even a Brahmin wallet, leather inside and out, is a value at $135. A similar Coach wallet might be leather/fabric on the outside and fabric on the inside for twice the cost.  I don’t know who is in charge of Coach, but to me they are definitely a brand on the decline.