Louis Vuitton Celebrates 130 Years of the Monogram

Louis Vuitton will celebrate 130 years since the creation of the Monogram and the indelible mark that it left on the fashion industry and the house itself. The Monogram, since its inception, has built up an exceptional reputation and has served—and still is serving—as a testament to craftsmanship and luxury.

In 1896, after taking over the fashion house during the Victorian Era, Georges Vuitton created the monogram print with the intent of paying tribute to his late father, cherishing the family and brand’s reputation, and preventing Louis Vuitton trunks from being plagiarized.

Centuries later, the Monogram would prove to be the permanent symbol of the house’s savoir-faire. When it comes to celebrity fashion, Louis Vuitton has a raw and extensive influence over the category—simply by using the Monogram. The bags with the monogram print have been special accessories to numerous A-list celebrities and fashion designers, such as Madonna, Rihanna, Pharrell Williams, Virgil Abloh, etc.

The five Monogram bags that have been dominating the fashion industry since 1930 with their interfaced LV initials and floral medallions give us a taste of creativity and elegance that brings us to a different form of obsession.

The Keepall

Created by Gaston-Louis Vuitton, the grandson of Louis Vuitton, in 1930, the Keepall was launched during a time when LV was all hard trunks and people needed a bag to accommodate their travel needs. When people wanted to move away from the bulky trunks and never-ending muscle strain from carrying them during travel, Louis Vuitton found the perfect solution: the Keepall.

Serving as a weekender bag that is your ultimate companion when you’re flying across the North Atlantic Ocean or visiting your grandparents for Thanksgiving, the Keepall became the symbol of modernity and high artistic quality.

The Keepall comes in four versatile sizes to accommodate your needs: 45, 50, 55, and 60. The 60 holds the title for the largest Keepall in Louis Vuitton history for its enormous capacity that can hold a week’s worth of luggage and essentials. It can hold shoes, clothes, makeup bags, etc. The 45 is the smallest Keepall that can only hold garments and other essentials for just a night trip or a gym day.

The Speedy

Starting off as the Express, the Speedy was the second Monogram bag to be released in 1930, and it stands as one of the most popular and influential bags of all time. The Speedy is described as “pliable and built like the Louis Vuitton Keepall” by Xavier Dixsaut, the director of innovation at LV, cementing the Speedy as a smaller version of the Keepall. However, it became a handbag in its own right. The Speedy, due to increasing transportation in the 1930s, became a compact essential for travel.

The bag didn’t only become relevant in the field of transportation but also for Audrey Hepburn’s fashion sense. Hepburn, one of the most famous and influential figures in the film and fashion industry, used the Speedy as her miniature everyday bag to carry her needs. In fact, Hepburn asked Louis Vuitton to turn the Keepall into a smaller day bag, and Louis Vuitton, at her request, introduced a 25-centimeter-wide bag that became popular and the symbolic bag for the house solely because of Hepburn.

The Speedy Bandoulière, that was introduced in 2011, includes a long shoulder strap for the bag to be worn on the shoulder and crossbody. The Bandoulière also features a two-way zipper to make the bag easier to open. The iconic bag can also adapt different designs, such as the Millionaire Speedy that Pharrell Williams was carrying during Paris Fashion Week in June 2023, the Takashi Murakami rainbow and cherry blossom motifs, Tyler, the Creator’s men’s capsule collection, etc.

The Noé

Though designed by Gaston in 1932 to carry champagne bottles from one place to another without them breaking, the bucket-shaped Noé bag became the masterpiece for carrying personal items and, for some occasions today, carrying around 4-5 bottles of champagne.

The Noé comes in different sizes, such as the Noé Purse (the tiniest Noé that can fit your phone, wallet, etc.), the Nano Noé (more compact than the Noé Purse and can fit more items), the Noé BB (the middle-sized Noé), the Petit Noé (the second-to-largest Noé), the NéoNoé BB (the smallest NéoNoé bag that can fit well for a handbag), and the NéoNoé MM (the largest of the NéoNoé bags, though not as large as the regular Noé).

If you don’t know what the NéoNoé is, it is a more structured bag with thinner and adjustable crossbody straps and a softer canvas than the original 1932 bag.

The Alma

First regarded as the “Squire” bag and made for Coco Chanel in 1925, the Alma launched in 1934, marking an era of emblematic Parisian quality. However, the bag did not get its name until six decades later. The bag went through three name changes, such as Champs-Élysées, then it was changed to Marceau before becoming the Alma in 1992, named after the Alma Bridge in Paris.

The Neverfull

The Neverfull is the last and most recent Monogram bag to launch into the world of fashion in 2007, and since then, it has remained an inextricable part of the high-quality LV inventory and an icon to many fashionistas across the globe. The bag stays true to its name by offering huge volume to fit any item you have to bring with you to go to the gym or to your college classes.

The newest additions

The house rings in 2026 by not only paying homage to the father of the Monogram but also by commemorating the 130th anniversary of the Monogram by releasing three new collections: the Monogram Origine, VVN, and Time Trunk—as well as the LV x Takashi Murakami rainbow Monogram collection that launched early in 2025 and featured Zendaya as the head of the campaign.

The Origine

In case you wanted to celebrate the 130th birthday of the Monogram by going all vintage, this design might complete the look. The Origine includes an archival-inspired Monogram canvas that LV embellishes by adding muted pastel shades, linen-cotton texture, and a subtle, beautiful name tag embossed with Louis Vuitton’s original handwritten signature.

VVN

Not only can Louis Vuitton complete stunning designs with the VVN cowhide leather and adorn the look with a warm beige shade, but they also prove the testament right by including a jacquard Monogram lining interior, a 130th anniversary label, and a neat Monogram tag.

Time Trunk

LV brings us to a dialogue between the past and present by introducing an archival-inspired trompe-l’œil design called the Time Trunk. The newest capsule presents metallic details, a vintage beige hue, silky textile lining, and initials to depict what kind of bag it is. I can say that Louis Vuitton deserves 10s across the board.

LV x TM

I cannot explain the amount of love and yearning I feel when I see the resplendent rainbow Takashi Murakami designs in Louis Vuitton. The LV x TM collection blooms in multicolored Monogram icons, gold-toned hardware that gives off a richer look to the bag, and an inner 20th anniversary tag with Murakami’s designs. Not only do the motifs give us a visceral feeling of infatuation, but the interplay between Takashi Murakami’s world of bright rainbows and joyful manga art and Louis Vuitton’s superb craftsmanship just makes us all happy.