While in Paris, I picked up a new handbag as a Christmas/Birthday gift from my husband. Goyard is an old French brand (a bit older than Louis Vuitton). I don't have anything Goyard in my handbag collection and I had been eying the St. Louis PM tote for a few years now. Earlier this year, I found out about the Goyard Artois from watching these two You Tube videos (The World According to Lisa and Belle at Heart). What I loved about this tote was that there was a zipper and the corners were also reinforced with leather. I had heard of many St. Louis Totes with worn out corners and the Goyard boutique in San Francisco told me as of last summer 2016 that it costs $225 to repair the corners, either by stitching or by adding leather caps.
The Goyard Artois tote is currently available now at most Goyard boutiques. Previously, this bag required mandatory monograming but that is no longer the case which worked out great for me since I was only in Paris for 2 1/2 days. If you live in the U.S. and won't be going to Paris anytime soon, you can order it by phone and have it sent to you. It currently comes in a range of colors (white, navy, green, purple, red -- this is from memory from the bags I saw on display) and like other Goyard bags, the black with black handles or black with black trim costs less than the color range. They call this the "classic colors". There is only one size for the Goyard Artois Tote while the St. Louis Tote has 2 sizes PM and GM.
Here are the prices:
Classic Colors €1,090.00 $1,635.00
Special Colors €1,420.00 $2,120.00
Measurements: Width 15.5 inches, Height 9.5 inches, Depth 5.5 inches
If you buy this in Paris and live outside of France or E.U., you can get the VAT tax refund. It would have been around $200 for me but since we flew back home the day after the new year, the airport was crazy busy and we didn't want to miss our flight.
I already have a Louis Vuitton Neverfull MM that is about 5 years old. I love it but the one thing I don't like is that there isn't a zipper. Having the Goyard Artois is fantastic because I never have to worry about my things falling out. The canvas also feels more sturdy and stronger than the St. Louis totes. The interior is the linen canvas and because it's a light color, I didn't want to get it dirty so I purchased a Purse To Go Organizer ($20.99-$29.99 depending on colors) in the Jumbo size. I ordered it while I was in France and timed it so I could have it arrive home by the time I came back to the states. I ordered from Amazon and chose the light pink color which is a nice contrast to the gray. The organizer fits perfectly with a bit of room to spare. I can zip the bag without any problem.
Here are some pictures of the Goyard Artois Tote:
I love the reinforced leather corners that spans the sides of the bottom of the bag.
There is one interior pocket inside that can close with a button tab.
The Goyard Paris Made in France is embossed on the leather for the button tab.
Here's the pocket open. It's very roomy and can fit your mobile phone, no matter what size.
The stitching for this bag is impeccable. The straps are really sturdy too.
I don't plan on carrying my laptop around in this bag a lot but if I do, it's nice to know that my Mac Book Air fits inside. I have an older 12 inch model.
My laptop also fits well with the purse organizer inside.
If you have any questions on the Goyard Artois Tote, please feel free to leave a comment below!
