I mentioned these bags earlier in my February What I Bought post, so you might know I tried out these bags as a present to myself. No the bags themselves aren’t exactly the present, but the opportunity to see both in person and then write this review is my present lol. So happy early birthday to myself :) (and yes I’ll pay the carbon tax to offset this frivolous experience).

Anyway the long story about these bags is that I once owned a vintage Hermes Kelly 32 (which I purchased off the Fashionphile) a long time ago. I loved it but never used it because at the time, it was almost too formal for me (I was still in my early 20s and wearing fast fashion). Also the box leather of the Kelly was quite fragile and was starting to flake off. So I sold it, though not without a little regret. And well as much as I would love to own an Hermes Kelly 25 (that’s my current ideal Hermes bag), I just can’t see myself spending that kind of money. So instead I started looking for something that was similar in style (a short top handle with a long shoulder strap) in a less flashy brand.

So the Cafune Stance bag has been on my radar for awhile. And when I signed up with ShopBop using a new email address, I qualified for 15% off my first order. So I let myself have a big birthday order to try everything that I had been eyeing for awhile. Unfortunately/fortunately I also impulsively added the Tory Burch Lee Radziwill bag to the order as well because it had caught my eye while I was doing some Insta-scouting of the Cafune bag.

So from the get-go I could tell the Cafune bag would be my favorite. First of all the Tory Burch bag came excessively packaged in plastic. I must have removed about 20 pieces of wasteful plastic, and it made the whole experience feel like I was unwrapping a cheap plastic toy from China. Other than that, I disliked the Tory Burch bag for these reasons:

- This bag is heavy! I forgot to weigh it before sending it back (sorry!) but it’s one of the heaviest top handle bags I’ve ever carried. That’s probably because it’s lined in leather inside. It’s a nice touch but adds so much weight.

-The opening of the bag is super confined and it was hard to get things in and out of the bag. Plus with the magnetic closure, opening it with one hand is impossible.

- The smooth shiny leather is the type that can be easily scratched.

-There isn’t much of a feet on the bag so it wouldn’t really raise it off the ground (which is the point of feet on a leather bag).

- The craftsmanship is so-so. Now that I pay attention to how something is made, I see that the edge paint on this was glopped on sloppily. No thank you for how much you’re paying for this purse.

-Unknown ethics behind the brand’s production.

-And lastly the value. This bag retails for $798! With tax, you’re looking at close to $900. This bag is definitely not worth that.

But oh the Cafune Stance bag! This bag is niiiice. I loved so many things about it:

-No excessive plastic packaging. Yes there were like 4 pieces but that’s nothing compared to the Tory Burch wrappings.

-The cotton twill lining on the inside means it’s on the light side (like the Polene numero un—which by the way, this brand reminds me of).

-You can easily open the bag and grab something inside with one hand. Also the flap opens up pretty wide so it’s easy to grab things even if they fall to the bottom of the bag.

-The leather is smooth and supple. Yes, it will still show scratches but I think less so than the Tory Burch bag.

-The feet on the bag is quite tall so the bag actually does sit off the ground.

-The light gold colored hardware is great because it’s not too yellow. It’d work for those who like both silver or gold hardware.

-The leather beige details on the bag is a nice touch: it’s on the underside of the handle and the underside of the shoulder strap.

-The exterior zip pocket is great for stashing your phone so you don’t have to open the bag each time to grab it. The inside zip pocket is perfect for keys and other small valuables.

-And after contacting Cafune requesting more information about their production practices, one of the owners, Day Lau, responded to me directly with these details: “The main leather comes from an Italian sustainable tannery, which was a pioneer in environmental conscious tanning, and was the first tannery in the world to receive “Carbon Footprint of Product” and “Environmental Product Declaration” certification. Since the complete leather production process is done in Italy, they have tighter control of the process and use less water, saves more energy and emit very low level of pollutants/ chemicals or CO2. Our factory [where they make the bags] is a family-run business headquartered in Hong Kong, with an international clientele including luxury European and Japanese brands. They have undergone a Workplace Conditions Assessment by Intertek (an international testing service provider) and achieved an overall facility score of 89%.  Specifically, they achieved a full mark of 100% in the Labour - (including Child Labour, Forced Labour, Discrimination, Discipline, Harassment or Abuse, Freedom of Association, Employment contracts) category. And also 100% in Environment category. We have strong ties with the factory and visit them every one to two months, and so far we have not had any concerns on how they treat their employees. They seem to enjoy their job and the turnover isn’t as high as some other factories we have worked with.”

-And finally the price. At $580 it’s much lower than the Tory Burch bag. Yes, it’s a tad on the high end, but I think it’s a good value for what you’re getting. Also if you can snag it during one of Shopbop’s sales, you can get it for a bit less. Granted, if their pricing was closer to Polene’s this would make for a more compelling bag. But if you compare Cafune to other small brands like Manu Atelier or Boyy, Cafune is on par if not more affordable than those other brands.

But in the end, with some regret, I decided not to keep the Cafune bag as well because it was so similar to my Celine Nano Belt. And I hardly use the Nano since I’m always lugging around a lot of baby stuff these days. So for days when I can travel light (like the rare occasions I’m going out sans baby), I might as well get good use out of the Nano. But that doesn’t mean I’m not open to buying the Stance bag secondhand or if I find it at a really good price down the line. I am a big fan of their bags!

(January 2021 Update: I returned this Shopbop one, but in the end I repurchased it through Cafune directly because I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The Cafune Stance bag is now firmly in my bag collection and I have no regrets. Also if you’re interested in getting a secondhand Cafune Stance bag, they pop up at a good price from time to time on the RealReal here or you can get a new one directly from their site. Also you can find my review of the Cafune Stance Wallet Crossbody here.}

{2022 update: I just learned that Cafune has upgraded their Stance bag to use a recycled inner lining. I’m so glad that they’re continuing to make improvements to their bag and brand!}