How Sails From One of Gianni Agnelli’s Yachts Became Stylish Summer Tote Bags
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The late industrialist Gianni Agnelli is famous in the automotive world for the global empire he created with Fiat—and for his ownership of Scuderia Ferrari, which dominated the 1970s Formula 1 world, as well as becoming an iconic supercar marque.
But Agnelli, nicknamed the “King of Italy” because of his outsized influence over the country’s economy, was also a serial yacht owner, with multiple race boats, including America’s Cup contenders. “I love the wind because it is the only thing you can’t buy,” he once quipped about his passion for sailing.
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A piece of that passion is now available via a limited-edition collection of tote bags from the Maine-based bagmaker Sea Bags. On Friday, the company released plans its Tiziana Collection, made from an old sail that Sea Bags rescued from Agnelli’s Tiziana, the 115-foot racing boat built in 1963 by Abeking & Rasmussen.
The sail was discovered in the course of a sustainability-focused partnership between Sea Bags and international sailmaker North Sails. While searching the latter’s inventory for suitable material, a sail that had once belonged to Tiziana was located in a North Sails sail loft in Mallorca (the exact years that the sail propelled the vessel around the Med are undetermined; the boat today is privately owned by a family in the Netherlands).
The Sea Bags team understood immediately that they had something special on their hands. “To know exactly where a sail comes from is rare and very remarkable,” says Tara Knupp, Sea Bags’ vice president of merchandising and product development.
While the sail’s provenance ensured that every bag would be unique, the actual construction allows for each to be visually distinct. Most sails are fashioned into a triangle shape by fastening together multiple, stacked zig-zag stitches that strengthen the seam.
The Tiziana sail, by contrast, was cut so that each bag would be marked by those identifiable stitches. “We handpicked every sail panel to ensure we were using that beautiful stitching and that it was going to be on every tote,” says Knupp.
Turning the sail cloth into functional totes inspired the design team to look at the glamorous backstory to use materials that were just as luxurious as the sails. “We finished them with materials one might have found on the yacht itself: rolled leather straps, vintage brass hardware, and a full-grain leather medallion emblazoned with a silhouette of the vessel,” says Knupp.
Each of the limited-edition totes—which have a numbered certificate of authenticity and retail for $500—features an internal patch with text detailing the history of Tiziana. “We wanted to invoke that history into the creation and personality of the bags,” says Knupp.
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