Travel in style with Louis Vuitton

When Fabio Cannavaro, former captain of the Italian national football team, walked into the 2010 FIFA World Cup final carrying a Louis Vuitton trophy case, some called it the world’s most spectacular product placement.

For a few minutes, all eyes were on the iconic monogram canvas box, which was used for the first time in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Prior to the now-famous trophy case, the World Cup trophy traveled in a nondescript metal trolley with a foam lining.

But thanks to a collaboration between FIFA and Louis Vuitton, the legendary trophy can now travel in safety and in style.

Back in the day, before the more cost-efficient and lightweight Samsonite was invented, trunks were used for traveling, extended trips and periods away from home, such as for boarding school.

Louis Vuitton began manufacturing high-quality traveling trunks in Paris back in 1854 before expanding and moving his factory to Asnières in 1860.

Vuitton became known for innovating with flat-top trunks that were stackable, versus the rounded-top trunks of other malletiers that were designed to promote water runoff.

Now more than 150 years later, various permutations of the Louis Vuitton trunk have been custom-made for high profile clients such as Karl Lagerfeld who ordered a case for his legendary iPod collection, or even a British customer who wanted a special traveling case for a favored rubber duck.

This July up to August 5, 2010, Louis Vuitton has flown in 10 rare antique trunks for a special exhibition at The Gallery of Greenbelt 5. The exhibit coincides with the opening of Louis Vuitton’s temporary space at Greenbelt 5 while the flagship store is under renovation.

Opening the Trunks and Toys exhibition last July 14 was the curator of Louis Vuitton’s Heritage Department, Raphaël Gérard.

Gérard walked us through 10 rare Vuitton trunks alongside 12 antique toys from the collection of the Vuitton family, as wells as 10 framed images of travel by famed French photographer Jean Larivière.

On display are a bed trunk in striped canvas from 1885, identical to one used by French explorer Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza in his expeditions to Africa. Inside, the bed trunk even boasts a horsehair mattress.

A Ladies’ Hat Trunk from 1910 can hold up to six medium-sized hats that can be fastened to the sides of the box by means of pins and ribbons. The specially made trunk assured that hats held their shape perfectly upon reaching their destination.

A Cabin Trunk from 1914 was specially made to comply with the requests of shipping companies that wanted the trunk to fit under a traveler’s bed space.

Now that trunks are rarely used for travel, they can still be ordered specially at Louis Vuitton stores worldwide, according to one’s requirements — be it three to four pairs of shoes, your office, laptop, gadgets, your finest cigars, your music.

Gérard told us about a certain customer who ordered special boxes to safely keep the baby teeth of his two children, as well as a Barbie trunk for his little girl.

Today the Asnières workshop designs and creates about 450 special orders a year. The company continues its vocation to create cases to carry a client’s more treasured belongings.

As Antoine Arnault, head of communications for Louis Vuitton, said: “From the legendary bed-trunk developed by Georges and Louis Vuitton in 1868 for the explorers, to the case for the FIFA World Cup Trophy — and the special order for the iPod case from a well-known designer, the Maison has always combined clever and elegant ways to satisfy the very specific needs of its clients, allowing them to express their uniqueness or achieve their dream.”