How the Balenciaga City Bag Became Every It Girl’s Must-Have Accessory

Few It bags better define an era than the Balenciaga Motorcycle. Introduced during the fall/winter 2001 show, toward the beginning of creative director Nicolas Ghesquière’s 15-year run at the hallowed fashion house, the Motorcycle soon became a fixture on the arm of every starlet and celebutante.

As ubiquitous as low-slung jeans and Uggs, the slouchy tote, with its signature lariats, zippers, and rugged hardware, was an oft-photographed red carpet and music-festival staple—carried by everyone from Hilary Duff and Sienna Miller to Nicole Richie and the Hilton sisters. The decade’s much-copied fashion plate du jour, Mary-Kate Olsen, famously sported a minty green version that was as much a part of her fabulously disheveled mien as her oversize sweaters. (Like Richie, who owned a Motorcycle in a range of bubble gum colors, Olsen would go on to acquire a veritable collection of the carryalls.)

For all its high-profile visibility, the Motorcycle almost didn’t come to be. When it was first shown as a prototype on the runway, Balenciaga bigwigs were reluctant to put the unstructured, logo-less model into production. They feared it was out of step with the era’s strict, status-conscious offerings such as the Fendi Baguette and the Dior Saddle. But the history of fashion is filled with serendipitous Sliding Doors moments. Kate Moss asked Ghesquière for one after the show, and when the brass got wind that the trendsetting model approved, they decided to commit. (It didn’t hurt that the rest of the prototypes were gifted to other fashion influencers of the time, such as the power stylists and editors Carine Roitfeld, Emmanuelle Alt, and Marie-Amélie Sauvé.)

The Motorcycle was eventually renamed the City, and has been tweaked and released under different guises, notably as the streamlined Le Cagole in 2021. Now, as references from the noughties dominate the fashion dialogue—even Richie and Paris Hilton are enjoying another pop culture moment—the bag has again been reissued, this time as the Frenchified Le City. The new version remains faithful to the original: The biker-chick menace is still writ large in every stitch, and like a Perfecto motorcycle jacket, the supple lambskin leather only gets better with age. The lariats and studded hardware are still there, and there are different sizes and a kaleidoscope of colors on offer. One feature, however, is noticeably absent: The miniature mirror that used to hang from the top of the bag has gone the way of trucker hats. In its place are a host of customization options, including new key rings and charms.

Not surprisingly, celebrities are once again contributing to the bag’s popularity. Superstars including Bella Hadid, Dua Lipa, and Kim Kardashian, as well as newcomers like Rachel Sennott, Devon Lee Carlson, and Joey King, have all recently been photographed toting Le City. And a new advertising campaign features Nicole Kidman, Amelia Gray, Kit Butler, and the bag’s fairy godmother, Kate Moss. Talk about cult status…

Collage credits, clockwise from top left: Kate Moss, Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images; Sarah Jessica Parker, Ray Tamarra/Getty Images; Lucy Liu, PA IMAGES/Alamy; LeAnn Rimes, Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage; Paris & Nicky Hilton, Gregorio Binuya/Everett Collection; Gisele Bundchen, WENN Rights Ltd.; Nicole Richie, Shutterstock; Ashley & Mary-Kate Olsen, M. Von Holden/FilmMagic; Cameron Diaz, James Devaney/WireImage; Emma Roberts, Jason Merritt/FilmMagic; Jessica Alba, Chris Polk/FilmMagic; Ashley Tisdale, WENN Rights Ltd.; Emma Bunton aka Baby Spice, C. Uncle/FilmMagic; Heidi Montag, Michael Bezjian/WireImage; Kourtney Kardashian, Ray Tamarra/Getty Images; Hilary Duff, Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic; Lindsay Lohan, Mark Mainz/Getty Images; Vanessa Hudgens, Jeff Vespa; Kim Kardashian, Larry Marano/Getty Images; Sienna Miller, Jamie Tregidgo/WireImage; Lauren Conrad, Alo Ceballos/FilmMagic. Center: Courtesy of Balenciaga.