Women, purses, Nicoll bros and the future of Scottish sporrans

[Nanook]

In the "women and kilts" thread the question of sporrans was raised.. since its now closed but the issue is, I think, interesting..

Many of us have been lucky enough not to have heard of the "Birkin Bag"

but its been to quote the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/18/fa...=all&position=

"This handbag, which sells for $6,000 to $80,000,"... "Andrew Bolton, the associate curator of the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, said the Birkin's status as an object of blaring consumer fetishism is due to its popularity among celebrities like Lil' Kim and to its surfacing in shows like "Sex and the City."

So what's the relevance with Kilts and a story published last year?

http://www.vogue.co.uk/vogue_daily/s...asp?stid=38249



Jane, of course, has come on in the years since Antonioni's "Blow Up" and top of the pops with "Je t'aime." but still..

Now if only Nicoll Bros in Bankfoot could have charged what Hermes do I'm sure they would not have (after 170 years) not had to close their doors at the end of last year....

And that's maybe the problem.. The sporran market has collapsed since men have been moving over to cheaper imported bags. But women? To contrast: What sane man would pay upwards of $ 6000 USD for a bag? Yet the said Birkin bags continue to have multi-year waiting lists..

Margaret Morrison has now "integrated" Bankfoot sporrans but I doubt (other than contract) we'll see the extremely large range again on offer. There is still also Janet Eagleton (an MBE for her workmanship) who continues to make very nice sporrans but it seems that the market is getting smaller and smaller..

[Dreadbelly]

Hornet's nest, meet pokey stick.

Pokey stick, meet hornet's nest.

[Dirka Skene]

No "normal" self-respecting woman would pay $6000 for a bag. On the other hand, an abnormally rich woman with nothing better to spend her money on, would buy one. I personally hate Birkin bags. I wouldn't spend so much money on something so ugly. Most women I know agree with me. The women I know are "normal." I certainly wouldn't mind my husband saving up for a very nice sporran though, but he would rather settle for one of the cheaper ones.
Now, once it becomes much more of a fashion statement for the average American man to own and wear kilts, more ritzy, expensive sporran shops will open. Right now, there are more rich women with incredible amounts of money in the USA who decide to spend their money on stupid expensive ugly bags than there are rich kilted men with incredibly amounts of money who decide to spend their money on expensive sporrans. That's why there's a larger market for expensive handbags that there is for expensive sporrans. I don't want to step on any toes, but that's how it is right now. Hopefully, it will change in the future.

[Splash_4]

I certainly wouldn't mind my husband saving up for a very nice sporran though, but he would rather settle for one of the cheaper ones.

There is cheap and there is cheap. If he is looking for a utility sporran, it is hard to beat this one http://pro.channeladvisor.com/storef...9&aid=37933758 However, after a couple of weeks of using it, I decided to go for one of the buzz kidder sporrans http://giftshop.scottishtartans.org/sporran.html and like it a whole lot more!

Mike

[Dirka Skene]

If he insists on getting a cheap one, I suggested this one to him. I like the braided leather.
http://pro.channeladvisor.com/storef...9&aid=38214311

[Nanook]

If he insists on getting a cheap one, I suggested this one to him. I like the braided leather.
http://pro.channeladvisor.com/storef...9&aid=38214311

Looks like the rest of the products on their site to be sourced from West Punjab (Pakistan) jobbers. I, unfortunately, can see the kids in Sialkot stitching sporrans alongside footballs.. I'm not sure it good news for the villages but it clearly not the stuff to maintain the traditional Scottish industry.

Its the same mindset of a preference for "cheap" that destroyed the American (New England) shoe industry. The imports were (and still are) horrible but cheap. Volume declines and so prices must rise or ...

[Panache]

If he insists on getting a cheap one, I suggested this one to him. I like the braided leather.
http://pro.channeladvisor.com/storef...9&aid=38214311

I have one of the older versions of Stillwater's braided sporran, a very good value for the money. I'm a big fan of Stillwater Kilts. Jerry, the owner, is an X Marks member and kilt wearer so he takes a lot of care about what he brings in. I wrote a review of some of Stillwater's products here:

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=23845

Buzz Kidder also makes an excellent sporran (big and sturdy).

Of course for a bit more there are always the Freelanders!

http://www.freelandersporrans.com/cms/index.php

Hands down the best sporran I know.

Cheers

[Nanook]

Buzz Kidder also makes an excellent sporran (big and sturdy).

Of course for a bit more there are always the Freelanders!

These may be fine casual pouches but they are not really traditional in the sense of the sporran patterns of the late 19th century. Neither are, I suspect, they up to making regimental hair or full mask sporrans. These are really demanding in some patterns--- some using bullion instead of hair tassels. Even sourcing some of the materials used in ceremonial garb is hardly easy given the use of many "obsolete" techniques, materials and dyes (such as Cochineal and some other more exotic pigments only available through tightly controlled channels) made using anachronistic methods and tooling. And again.. the smaller the market, the higher the prices due to the fixed costs of keeping things running. Some will, of course, say "Bugger tradition".

[Warlock]

I think the freelander is the nicest one I've ever seen. One day I'll own one as my dress sporran.

[Andrew Breecher]

I think the freelander is the nicest one I've ever seen. One day I'll own one as my dress sporran.

Although I've seen that David and Sten made a sporran of hair, the rest of their sporrans are not dress sporrans. They are very much day wear sporrans. Don't get me wrong - I love them. I own one in brown that wear nearly every day, and I have a black one on my list of things to buy when I can spare the money. But they aren't dress sporrans.

Andrew.