THESE BACKPACKS SHOULDER THE BURDEN
Balanced between functionality and style, backpacks can be the accessory to change your outfit and life.
There’s a lot of unwarranted red tape around backpacks. Some say backpacks should only be worn when traveling, others that backpacks should be reserved for children, while others swear by the style. The key to bypassing the imaginary rules and regulations around bags is simply to find the right one. The best backpacks to wear in 2024 effortlessly combine style and substance, melding the styled worlds of designers like Issey Miyake and Rick Owens with the practical features that have made backpacks such a universal necessity.
Ranging in size, fabric, and purpose, these ten rucksacks represent the best that the category has to offer. For sportier acumen, look to designs like the Salomon 11S A.B.1 Backpack, which has had a visual makeover by long-term partner-in-design Boris Bidjan Saberi, or to a collaborative effort between Undercover and The North Face. Those leaning to the more luxurious end of the spectrum should focus on pieces like the Burberry Rocco Backpack or the Glam Slam Backpack from Maison Margiela, which posit style as a priority.
Featured In This Image: Burberry backpack
Burberry’s Rocco Backpack is cut from coated canvas, which offers similar durability and longevity as leather. Printed throughout the canvas is a dark blue check that reveals itself only on close inspection. The effect is a bag that, from a distance, is supremely minimal but shows a touch of flair in closer quarters.
Featured In This Image: Julius backpack
Tokyo brand Julius takes heavy inspiration from founder Tatsuro Horikawa’s love of architecture. Using black and gray as its building blocks, the brand offers a range of sculptural pieces that use form and texture as their language in the absence of any bold detailing. The Scalene Backpack is defined by a 14- by 26-inch zipped compartment that cuts an eye-catching silhouette when worn.
Featured In This Image: BAO BAO ISSEY MIYAKE backpack
Issey Miyake’s maverick design mindset has made him one of the best-known Japanese designers of all time. Along with his iconic pleats, Miyake enjoys exploring the geometric world of triangles with his BAO BAO range. This futuristic backpack features a field of polyvinyl triangles in formation against a contrasting green backdrop.
Featured In This Image: Officine Creative backpack
Officine Creative’s refined Italian simplicity shines in the Helmet 047 Backpack, which puts luxe grained leather at the forefront of the design. The aged leather rolls the clock back, giving the backpack a distinctive vintage feel.
Featured In This Image: 11 by Boris Bidjan Saberi backpack
Boris Bidjan Saberi has been giving Salomon collections a signature dystopian twist for many seasons now. While the collaboration usually takes the form of beaten, futuristic footwear, this season sees it extend to accessories such as the Salomon 11S A.B.1 Backpack.
Featured In This Image: Maison Margiela backpack
Halfway between a leather handbag and a women’s rucksack, the Maison Margiela Glam Slam Backpack isn’t concerned about categorization—it’s more about having fun. With gold-tone chain straps and a baby pink cushioned leather build, it’s a showstopping accessory.
Featured In This Image: UNDERCOVER backpack
Even in experimental collaboration, The North Face never loses sight of its utilitarian core values. This expedition-ready backpack is cut from coated waterproof nylon ripstop, but features the essentials for modern life: a protective laptop compartment to be specific.
Featured In This Image: Snow Peak backpack
Snow Peak’s pedigree in outdoor-ready design is undisputed. With items like the Light Field Backpack, it’s not hard to see why. Hard-wearing nylon ripstop makes up the body, which widens at the top to maximize packing room, while bungee straps to the face offer ad hoc storage.
Featured In This Image: Rick Owens backpack
Rick Owens takes a nostalgic trip down memory lane and redesigns the classic school sports bag with a touch more luxury. Now cut from supple, high-end leather, with the fragile drawstrings replaced by thick double laces, the humble drawstring backpack gains a whole new personality.
Featured In This Image: Acne Studios backpack
Much like Rick Owens, Acne Studios chooses the nostalgic path here. The Sling Backpack will feel very familiar to anyone who grew up in the early ’00s. Now reinvigorated with thoughtful details like a long leather zip pull and waxed cotton construction, the sling bag feels ready for a comeback.
- Date: January 11, 2024
