The new Jacquemus bag could become an even bigger hit than the iconic Chiquito

I don’t hide that Jacquemus is my favorite brand. From rushing down Paris’s Avenue Montaigne just hours before a flight, to shared summers on the Adriatic coast with accessories swaying in the breeze like in one of his campaigns, to the absurd ways I tried to get hold of his book with Martin Parr, I could write a novella about our love affair. Still, in recent months it seemed as if Simon Porte had stepped back, and as if the brand’s marketing, once led by Sam Youkilis’s eye, had gone quiet (or rather, moved over to Burberry). That’s why I was genuinely excited by the campaign for the new Valérie bag. Named after Jacquemus’s mother, it unfolds through a series of everyday scenes starring Charlotte Le Bon—some reimagine moments Simon remembers from childhood, while others mirror those modern women can easily relate to. Behind the camera this time is Rosie Marks, and the new bag already threatens to surpass the cult popularity of the Chiquito.

It-torbe

Simon Porte Jacquemus entered the world of leather goods seven years ago. Let’s go back to the Chiquito bestseller, first shown during the fall/winter 2017 show. By the next season, spring/summer 2018, a miniature version appeared—so tiny it couldn’t even fit a smartphone. Yet that detail didn’t stop Chiquito from quickly climbing to the top of the it-bag hierarchy, alongside designs like Bottega Veneta’s Pouch or Gucci’s Dionysus. It was an unexpected triumph for a young French luxury label on the rise.

Since then, Jacquemus has released many successful models, from the understated and versatile Bambino, to the charming, nineties-inspired Bisou, to the structured Turismo. But the Valérie stands apart for its story—warm, sincere, and poetic, just as we expect from Jacquemus.

 

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A tribute to his mother

After the tragic death of his mother Valérie in 2008, Simon Porte Jacquemus decided to start his own brand, often emphasizing that behind his great success stands the lasting presence of the woman who raised and deeply inspired him. In 2017, he dedicated the collection La Bombe to her, saying: “I don’t think I ever saw my mother more beautiful than in the evenings after the beach, when she was in love. When we would walk along the harbor, past souvenir shops full of earrings, ceramics, sarongs, and hair ribbons. That’s the woman I wanted to speak about.”

The new bag was introduced as part of the Spring 2026 Le Paysan collection, presented at the Versailles Orangerie in late June. It tells the story of his roots—of a boy from a family of Provençal farmers who chose to pursue fashion (his grandmother sat in the front row and quickly went viral on social media). And although the presence of his mother has always been woven into his collections, he has never celebrated her with such power before. Giving her name to a bag that could become iconic is the deepest and most personal tribute he could offer.