Ahead of Luar’s NYFW show on Tuesday, designer and founder Raul Lopez has teamed up with American Express on a new Ana bag collaboration, merging the worlds of fashion, food and travel.
The limited-edition design comes in the three metallic hues of the Amex Gold Card colors: gold, rose gold and the new white gold. The new Ana bag colorways will be showcased during Lopez’s upcoming New York Fashion Week runway show; Amex is also a sponsor of the show and the Luar after party.
The bags feature one-of-a-kind bag charms — another first for the bag— reflecting the Amex Gold Card annual consumer credits such as an airplane to represent travel benefits, a martini glass and a coffee cup for dining rewards from Resy and Dunkin Donuts, the brand’s signature Luar “L” initial and more.
Luar designer and founder Raul Lopez poses with his new metallic gold collection of bags.
Lopez told WWD that he’s wanted to work with Amex for a while and noted a “synergy” between the Ana bag and the Amex Gold Card — a wide variety of people “who enjoy life” and “feel fab” carry both the bag and credit card. Moreover, Lopez said Amex approaching him for this collaboration came at a serendipitous time, as he’s been interested in creating metallic and gold bag colors.
“To celebrate the launch of our recently updated Gold Card, we’ve collaborated with Luar to design the perfect dining accessory that captures the essence of the Gold Card brand and features the benefits our members love the most,” said Bess Spaeth, senior vice president of U.S. premium products and membership rewards at American Express. “We were so impressed by Luar’s deep commitment to creating beautiful, high-quality products with a strong attention to detail. American Express shares those same values, making Luar the perfect partner to bring to life the Gold Card benefits in a unique and creative way.”
The Ana bag is a cult-favorite signature of the Luar brand. Lopez’s intention when creating it was to pay homage to his family and sees the bag as an heirloom to pass on from generation to generation. Lopez said he aimed to bridge social classes together and create an “identifiable” bag that “commands attention and is a conversation starter.”
“The [Ana] bag is a physical representation of who I am and what I stand for,” Lopez said. “I think it shows how big my community is and my following. I like to make other people feel confident in their own skin. My whole ethos is to make people feel empowered and be part of something. Everyone is welcome into the Luar world, as long as you’re respectful.”
Luar adds bag charms for the first time to his signature Ana bag.
Courtesy of American Express
Lopez said the worlds of food and fashion are very similar. Like food, fashion is made by hand and strives to create something people enjoy. Moreover, he notes that fashion and food “need to be done right all the time” — and points to the amount of skill, discipline and hard work it takes to be in both fields.
Lopez cited Raoul’s and Lucien as his favorite spots to eat during NYFW — which he said are “classic spots where I can catch up with friends and feel good.” Lopez calls himself and his studio team “Dunkin girlies,” with three locations surrounding his Williamsburg-based studio. His favorite is to top the Dunkin Donuts hash browns with caviar — a representation of the highbrow, lowbrow culture that often embodies the New York fashion scene.
Teasing what’s to come at the Luar runway show as “iconic,” Lopez told WWD that the upcoming show will feature new divisions in the brand with shoes and new silhouettes. The show’s main focus will be basics and other ready-to-wear — which Lopez has never tapped into before.
The limited-edition Amex Gold x Ana bag collaboration will be available on Luar’s website luar.world for $265 on Tuesday after the runway show, with pre-orders starting today.
