Sari Brown, owner of Lux Couture

Experts say the “It” bag trend may be on its way out, but that’s not having an effect on online retailer and soon-to-be bricks-and-mortar store owner Sari Brown. For the past 3 years, Brown has operated her Wellesley, Mass.-based e-tail business, Lux Couture, and now she plans to launch her first retail location later this year in Newton Highlands, located about 10 miles southwest of Boston.

This spring, Brown continues to note that exotic skin is in, but thinks luxe leather handbags are mounting a major comeback, due in large part to the current economy. She suspects, “The interesting part is that I really think people associate skin with being very decadent and free-wheeling, which wasn’t bad when the economy was good. I see a parallel with skin bags and the economy. People see leather as not so flashy and showy, and I think that’s why leather’s making a comeback.” Another major impetus? “We haven’t seen [leather] done in many, many years in such a fabulous way.” Here’s a look at some of Brown’s top-selling spring styles.

Tia Tote by D’Angel

Price:

Retails for $550

Why It’s A Top Seller:

“What’s selling really well are what we call price-point bags,” says Brown. “We have this D’Angel Tia tote bag from Indonesia. That bag is a phenomenon all by itself. It just sells and sells and sells and we re-order and re-order and re-order. It’s a standard, beautiful drawstring tote in beautiful Indonesian python. People are just thrilled to have it.”

Trinity by Katherine Kwei

Price:

Retails for $200

Why It’s A Top Seller:

A wide range of colors appeals to an even wider range of customers. “I’m just completely sold out of this Katherine Kwei wristlet bag,” says Brown. “That bag is priced at $200 and it comes in candy colors like powder blue. There’s even a red one, [as well as] beige and coffee cream colors.”

Oversized clutch by De Couture

Price:

Retails for $1,350

Why It’s A Top Seller:

Brown sees luxe leather, like the one used in this clutch, grabbing the spotlight from skin in the coming months. “We’re seeing leather again; leather is starting to make a comeback. Skin is still good but we’ll have a big push for leather in the fall.”

Simone clutch in crocodile by LAI

Price:

Retails for $825

Why It’s A Top Seller: 

“It’s a classic bag forever. This is a bag people invest in, but it’s an investment that’s not going to break the bank. It’s also got a convertible shoulder strap. It’s very, very chic and elegant. It’ll probably outlast someone’s life. You can pass it down from generation to generation. It only gets better.”

River Tote in python by Sang A

Price:

Retails for $2,375

Why It’s A Top Seller:

“The other bag that sells like crazy is the Sang A river tote in python. We’ve done it in every color, and even ostrich. We had an exclusive ostrich version and it sold out. I sell it to a lot of professional women. It’s very chic and very classic. It’s a huge value for the money. It’s one of my personal favorite bags.”

Overnight tote in python by Pauric Sweeney

Price:

Retails for $2,800

Why It’s A Top Seller:

This bag is a perennial favorite. “That was the bag that, originally, Lindsay Lohan was seen carrying around. That was a huge bag. We’ve done it in every color—metallic, python, you name it. It has a very classic shape, and it always has a brown leather handle with whip stitching on it. We continue to carry it season after season.”

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