LUGGAGE

We’ve all heard the adage: “You get what you pay for.”  Nowhere can this truism be more realized than in the matter of travel luggage.  It doesn’t matter whether it is a wheeled upright, a garment bag, or a duffle, you get what you pay for.  It doesn’t matter if it is soft sided or hard bodied.  You can spend less and spend it more often, which will mean you will also suffer the frustration and inconvenience of broken wheels and zippers, and expanding handles that don’t expand.  Or… you can spend more, and spend it less often, and avoid the aforementioned hassles.  

If you suffer from “designer brands” syndrome,  if your style DNA requires you to be seen with the latest “logo” fabrics and attached labels, then much of what you will find in this post will be useless.  My comments will lean toward a more practical understanding of how to transport your belongings from one place to the other.  Additionally, you can expect to pay more than the rest of us, and what you gain from the increased cost will have less to do with performance and more to do with how you “feel” about being “seen” by complete strangers standing next to you at the departure gate.

We travel a lot.  Perhaps not as much as the businessman / salesman who travels daily.  But, we probably are well above average in the amount of miles we log by land, sea, and air.  Over the years Joni and I have spent a lot on luggage.  For many years we followed the path of “spend less”.  I remember many times standing in JC Penny calculating the differences between one “sale” over another… “Wow!  We can get 6 pieces of luggage for $89!!”   And… we have spent $89, or $99, or $129, over, and over, and over again.  

We (and our stuff) have gone to a lot of wonderful destinations and made it safely back home.  Here’s what I’ve learned about “cheap” luggage: It may transport your stuff, but some crucial component WILL AWLAYS break when you need most for it not to do so.

A few years ago, we did something that I am very loathe to do.  We spent a whole bunch of money on an impulse purchase.  On a casual evening out, Joni and I decided to stop at Briarwood Mall.  We were needing to replace broken pieces of our $129 “set of six” for an upcoming trip, although that is not why we went to the Mall.  There we were, standing somewhere between JC Penny and Sears when we looked up and spotted a very small shop; “Ed’s Luggage”.  

What happened over the next 45 minutes would improve our traveling experiences for a very long time to come.  We would end up several hundreds of dollars poorer, but “much more pleasant travels” richer.  What we ended up purchasing were 2 pieces of Briggs and Riley luggage.  Also, I should note that it was great to be dealing with someone who knew their business / products, as opposed to some part-time department store employee that didn't have a clue.

What I have learned is that whether it is a weekend lover’s get-a-way, or several days at sea, “stuff” happens.  You should always expect for any number of things to not go as planned.  If you cannot handle having think on the run… to trouble shoot your way out of an unplanned contingency…  if having to adapt to unplanned inconveniences causes you to get stressed out!!!, then you should probably stay home.   With this in mind, why should you have the very real possibility of “luggage failure” built into your plans when it is quite possible not to do so?  Eliminate known problems beforehand so that you can concentrate on dealing with the unavoidable problems that are naturally inherit in the traveling experience and beyond your ability to prevent.

Briggs and Riley, founded in 1993, is based out of Hauppauge, New York.  Perhaps their best know feature is their “Simple as that” guarantee.  You can learn about it by visiting either their website http://www.briggs-riley.com/ ,or one of their retailers.  Because I had suffered for years from the problems created by poorly made luggage, the Briggs and Riley guarantee was a very important point for me to consider.

I know some that are big fans of carry-on luggage.  I’m not one of them.  It is true that carrying your luggage along with you has its advantages.  However, for the way that we like to travel, I want to “check” as much as possible.

The two pieces we purchased were the 20 in. and the 27 in. Expandable Wide-Body Uprights.  Both are two-wheeled cases, as opposed to the popular “four-wheeled spinners”.  They connect quickly and effortlessly with a well engineered strap, which makes pulling over 85-90 lbs. of stuff through airport terminals a breeze.  The strap remains securely in place until it is easily disconnected and then stowed in one of the front zippered compartments.  

Both pieces also feature a built in tri-fold garment compartment that works very nicely for stowing my tuxes, and Joni’s evening gowns.  I like this feature very much.  It eliminates the need for a separate Garment Bag.  Garment Bags that I have owned previously offered very little protection for expensive clothing, and were notoriously bad about falling apart / open during transit.  These Briggs and Riley bags provide amazing protection when compared to other options.

Let’s face it, luggage is luggage.  Overall it is a pretty simple thing designed to do a difficult but necessary job.  Although any premium luggage maker will boast about its own “exclusive” features, what I learned about owning well made, well designed luggage is that nice features are not really what you are paying for.  What you are getting for the premium price is obvious once you take your first trip.   Briggs and Riley luggage is made to last.  It is very… very… well made.  Premium materials, well built… ready to do the rugged job required.  It is dependable.

One disadvantage should be noted concerning the larger 27 in. Upright.  While packing, it is very easy to rapidly exceed the 50 lb. weight limit which most airlines have as their maximum weight without additional charges.  More than once, I have had to “repack” while checking in at the ticket counter.

Also, while it is possible for me to lift a large 50 lb. bag (I do work out at the local fitness center 3-5 days / week), that doesn’t mean that it can be done effortlessly.  And yes… I suppose that I could pay Porters to do my lifting for me… but, I usually don’t.  All of this is to say that one should be careful when purchasing “large” bags.  Just remember, you may have to pick it up!

While it might seem as though I am a paid spokesman for Briggs and Riley, I most certainly am not.  This post is not a review about a specific brand of premium luggage.  My experience with Briggs and Riley serves only to make a point and to offer a few insights that I hope might be helpful.  You get what you pay for, and sometimes being willing to pay a steeper price brings greater benefits than the sum of the separate parts of a few pieces of luggage.
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