A Man AANDD His Bags

Adam Davidson is the architect—literally—behind the unisex bag line AANDD. Two years ago, the Berkeley-trained building/interior designer began working with a fabricator in New Jersey, turning his extracurricular accessory-making hobby into a bona fide business. AANDD officially launched about a year later with three no-frills luggage pieces and was met with admiration by retailers such as Maryam Nassir Zadeh, the first to carry the line. Curious to learn more about the handsome leather and waxed canvas pieces in their new fall iterations, I met with Davidson at his downtown Brooklyn loft, just hours before he jetted off to Panama, packed AANDD “Sea Bag” in tow.

The broad inspiration behind the New York-based line stems from a convergence of Davidson’s “crunchy” Seattle upbringing, considerations of modern-day functionality, and a keen examination of New York City passersby. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest meant a lot of exposure to bags for hiking and other outdoor activities. While such pieces possess great functional details, they’re not exactly urban or chic. Rather than constructing AANDD’s items from synthetic performance fabrics, Davidson chose to work with Italian leathers and New Hampshire’s finest waxed canvas–tailoring the bags to fit laptops and iPads instead of carabiners and portable stoves. Additional design influence is found amongst fellow New Yorker subway riders, drawings of whose accessories dominate the pages of Davidson’s sketchbook.

In its inception, AANDD was envisioned exclusively as a men’s line; but as soon as the bags hit stores, women couldn’t help but gravitate toward the smart-looking pieces. Luckily, the label’s fortuitous name already seemed to capture the bags’ genderless appeal. “I realized that AANDD is a good name for unisex,” Davidson explains, “like men’s AANDD women’s.” That said, creating something that attracts both genders is not without its difficulties. “I just want to discover unisexy,” he laughs. “You want it to be seductive…not too androgynous.”

Riffing off of the ideas of “unisexiness” while designing Fall 2011, Davidson made a concerted effort to include a few pieces to appeal more specifically to the female consumer—traditionally “masculine” silhouettes, such as the briefcase and the folio, but created on a slightly smaller scale. The “Sea Sack,” a petite backpack crafted from rich leather, resembles the sort of artisan pieces toted around by an Italian tourist at the Metroplitan Museum in the summertime. In Fall 2011, Adam Davidson’s take on the bag is also perfect for a New York girl on the go.

The rest of the fall collection maintains AANDD’s unisex aesthetic in a mix of styles new and old. Last year’s staples—the “Sea Bag” weekender, “Sea Duffel,” and “Courier” messenger bag—are also joined by the “Alpine Bag” rucksack, the binocular-sized “Pocket Satchel,” and a perfect, everyday tote. Each piece is available in either full leather or a combination of leather and canvas, presenting a fairly broad array of looks and price points available.

While he continues to introduce new styles from season to season, Adam Davidson focuses primarily on creating investment pieces to last throughout the year and for many to come. Judging by the look and feel of the leather goods in his studio, it seems certain that the bags will only become more attractive with age, enriched by the very nature of their handling. With great design AANDD quality to match, we simply can’t get enough.

For more information on AANDD, their store, and a list of current retailers, please visit the company’s website.