The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

COACH-A New Level of Cool Again

By Tom Handley June 12, 2013

Back when Coach started, in 1941, it occupied a space on the west side of Manhattan, and made small leather goods. It started with just six leather workers, making everything by hand, and the inspiration was the worn patina of a baseball mitt.

Widely recognized as a distinctly American brand with a long heritage of quality and craftsmanship, Coach began as a men’s company. Now in today’s market place, Coach has again understood the importance of the men’s business. They are no longer just your girlfriend’s handbag brand.

In 2003, the Hudson Collection was introduced. It was the first time they mixed materials, for a more casual look. High-quality canvas was paired with Coach premium leather, to adapt to the change of a more laid back work place, happening across the country. The men’s collection continued to grow and change, as did the male consumer. Previously known for being very ‘briefcase case formal’, and ‘traditionally conservative’, Coach opened it’s first men’s only freestanding store on Bleeker Street, in New York’s mega-booming West Village in 2010. That made the male consumer (and his girlfriend) do a triple take !

Today Coach is once again a cool name to banter around when discussing men’s fashion and accessories. They’ve continue to adapt to the ever changing tech savvy male consumers needs and wants, from iPad and iPhone cases to water resistant zippered closured beach pouches.

Recently Coach teamed up with renowned American audio brand Tivoli to create this cool collectible limited edition radio: a compact, modern design wrapped in luxurious artisanal leather and equipped with the most cutting-edge technology. Let’s call it ‘minimalist baller’.

Speaking of, they also have the most ballin’ baseball collection with bats, balls and mitts, that harkens back to the initially inspired theme in 1941.

With five men’s only stores across the country, in additional to their men’s/women’s stores, and an intense offering on their website, Coach got with the program, and are bringing it, to the gentleman, stronger than ever.

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Tom Handley is a contributor for TheManual. As a professor of public relations and social media strategy at Parsons The New…

Fashion & Style

Ready for a comeback? PUMA’s Easy Rider is back

Easy Rider Sneakers

With many sneakers coming back in recent seasons, PUMA is getting ready to blow them all out of the water. Once again, one of the company’s staple sneaker designs is ready to grace shelves and give us the true retro sneaker. While still iconic and recognizable, there’s no doubt that PUMA’s Easy Rider sneaker was the beginning of a new era for the casual sneaker, and to many regarded as one of the first of its kind.

Fashion & Style

This new Cartier watch tells time backwards

Turn back time with the new Santos

Cartier Rewind on wrist

Wristwatches may be distinctly masculine pieces of hardware now, thanks to some very popular people in pop culture and in our own history adopting them. British super spy James Bond, movie stars, and athletes are the people we look up to who wear watches that catch our eye. Soldiers, cops, firefighters, and first responders wear watches they trust to ensure they can save lives. Pilots and divers created an entire industry around watches specifically designed for their vocations. And the very first pilot's watch was none other than a Cartier watch.

Alberto Santos-Dumont was a pioneer in the flight world and was one of the first people on Earth to achieve air travel. He was a competitor of the Wright Brothers, and, depending on the source, he preceded them in flight. In any case, the French celebrity went to Louis Cartier, another pioneer of his craft, and procured a square timekeeper meant for the wrist. The Cartier Santos Dumont was born. Over a century later, Cartier attended Watches and Wonders and presented the newest in the line of Santos watches, one that reverses time.
The Rewind tells time backwards

Fashion & Style

You can’t get these SNXS-inspired Seiko watches in the U.S. (yet)

Seiko SNXS is back with 3 new watches

Seiko 5 Sports SNXS Series watches

Throwing it back to the early days of Seiko, the latest edition to the Seiko 5 Sports lineup pays homage to a beloved icon of the brand: the Seiko SNXS. However, this time, it's a modern interpretation, and fans will love it. The SRPK series features the SPRK87 with a blue dial, the SRPK89 in black, and the SRPK91 in ivory. Despite the seemingly basic colors and simple design, these new pieces breathe new life into the original. These new watches are all about the classic Seiko design elements that fans of the brand appreciate, with some modern features like 100-meter water resistance that bring it into this year.
Seiko SNXS has officially returned

Seiko made history in 1963 when they introduced the Sportsmatic 5, Japan's first automatic day-date. The Seiko 5 quickly shot up in popularity as it was crafted with a stainless steel case and bracelet, had water and shock resistance, and featured tons of practical functions while still being affordable. It debuted during the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, meaning it was put on the map globally (pun intended), and by 1966, Seiko 5 exports surpassed the collective output of automatic watches from Switzerland.