LIFESTYLE
Rimowa's Premium Aluminium Luggage
When choosing a luggage brand, durability is essential.
18 October, 2016
Thanks to their sturdiness, lightweight aluminium luggage travels exceptionally well.
Celebrities often spend a great deal of time traveling between destinations, so it makes sense that they would care about their choice of luggage. As a result, leading brands like Rimowa have become popular among stars ranging from Martha Stewart to Kate Upton. Thanks to Rimowa's app and integrated technology, the brand is going hi-tech.
The signature Rimowa aluminium suitcase is already known for being sturdy, but style tends to be more important to its a-list fans. The style is so well respected that the luxury goods company behind Louis Vuitton recently bought an 80 percent stake in the Rimowa firm, which has produced aluminium suitcases in Cologne, Germany since 1937.
The signature Rimowa aluminium suitcase is already known for being sturdy, but style tends to be more important to its a-list fans. The style is so well respected that the luxury goods company behind Louis Vuitton recently bought an 80 percent stake in the Rimowa firm, which has produced aluminium suitcases in Cologne, Germany since 1937.
The distinctive parallel grooves in a Rimowa case are instantly recognizable, and there are 140 stores that carry Rimowa luggage across the globe. The luggage brand is equally well known for its technological advances and integration as it is for the decades of consumer trust it has earned as a result of its high quality. Few people, though, know the Rimowa story began with a fascination with aircraft and flying, especially the Junkers F13.
The Junkers F13 was a plane made of an aluminium alloy called duralumin nearly a century ago. It took its first flight in June 1919, setting records for altitude and flight length at the dawn of aviation. Richard Morszeck, father of current Rimowa CEO Dieter Morszeck, used the same metal to design luggage sets inspired by the F13, right down to the grooved design. The luggage enjoyed immediate popularity with its connection to the exciting world of air travel, its light and highly maneuverable weight, and its durability.
Image: Meiré und Meiré
The Junkers F13 was a plane made of an aluminium alloy called duralumin nearly a century ago. It took its first flight in June 1919, setting records for altitude and flight length at the dawn of aviation. Richard Morszeck, father of current Rimowa CEO Dieter Morszeck, used the same metal to design luggage sets inspired by the F13, right down to the grooved design. The luggage enjoyed immediate popularity with its connection to the exciting world of air travel, its light and highly maneuverable weight, and its durability.
Image: Meiré und Meiré
That is one reason why the younger Morszeck got involved in a project to create a working replica of the F13, using 3D laser scanning for precision design. It took two years, but the replica Junkers F13 that inspired Rimowa's historic design took off from Dübendorf, Switzerland, in September with Morszeck at the helm. The Rimowa CEO always been at the helm of a company that has taken the advantages of its traditional aluminium – and later, high-tech polycarbonate cases – and reimagined them as travel and technology evolved.
Dieter, who is actually the third-generation Morszeck at Rimowa, designed the first waterproof case in 1976. It became the luggage of choices for filmmakers, photographers, and journalists who needed to protect their equipment and their work, helping build Rimowa's following among celebrities and stars.
That commitment to technology means that in today's Internet of Things, Rimowa – in partnership with Lufthansa Airlines – has created smart luggage.
Dieter, who is actually the third-generation Morszeck at Rimowa, designed the first waterproof case in 1976. It became the luggage of choices for filmmakers, photographers, and journalists who needed to protect their equipment and their work, helping build Rimowa's following among celebrities and stars.
That commitment to technology means that in today's Internet of Things, Rimowa – in partnership with Lufthansa Airlines – has created smart luggage.
The Lufthansa Alu Collection Business Trolley is just one of the aluminium magnesium suitcases being redesigned with an electronic luggage tag that, when used with a smartphone, ends the need for long checked baggage lines and unwieldy paper tags. It is based on an E Ink display and is Bluetooth-radio enabled, with the green stripe that is mandatory in Europe.
Rimowa's smart luggage system became available this year for Lufthansa flights at Frankfurt, Munich, and Hamburg airports, with 800 completed flights since March. The company just announced that the smart Rimowa suitcases can be used on Lufthansa flights operated by United or Austrian Airlines, during a September panel discussion on Digitalization of the Travel Industry that hailed the digital check-in app.
Thanks to their new smart luggage, the line of products designed reflected the first Junkers F13 is keeping itself squarely at the leading edge of air travel.
Rimowa's smart luggage system became available this year for Lufthansa flights at Frankfurt, Munich, and Hamburg airports, with 800 completed flights since March. The company just announced that the smart Rimowa suitcases can be used on Lufthansa flights operated by United or Austrian Airlines, during a September panel discussion on Digitalization of the Travel Industry that hailed the digital check-in app.
Thanks to their new smart luggage, the line of products designed reflected the first Junkers F13 is keeping itself squarely at the leading edge of air travel.
Banner image: Alessandra's Beijos