Satchel and Messenger Bags Explained

Since time immortal, man has been engaged in some sort of profession and a bag has been his essential partner at work. With rapid industrialization, a slew of different jobs sprang up giving rise to work natures that were uniquely different to each other. Man often found himself travelling to different locations to manage work and was on the go quite often.

The Origins

Satchels are among the earliest designs of bags known to man, being used by ancient Roman and Greeks at the prime of their civilizations. Satchel school bag designs became popular after second world war as penetration of television sets increased in households, showing English cinema and drama serials with children going to schools in their uniforms while their satchel school bag hanging on one shoulder by their side. Around the same time, a similar silhouette, known as messenger bag became popular in America, among couriers for delivery of mail and important notes. As the age of western industrialization graduated into corporate Europe and America, this messenger bag was more commonly seen in the hands of young and busy professionals who were different and much more dynamic in mindset than their predecessors.

Safe to mention here that with the fast paced growth in industrialization and boom in the service sector, man found himself doing jobs that required him to carry his work and personal belongings together while travel and meet people all the while managing a professional appearance. This gave birth to the modern trendy and durable leather satchels and messenger bags we see around work place currently.

Satchel vs Messenger Bag – How Are They Different

It’s a tough question, specially in the current market place which has all sorts of different smart designs available, making differences between work bag designs increasingly blurred, but from a historical perspective, we can safely say that satchel is the original name for this rectangular bag design silhouette.

Messenger bags are a form of satchel that came to the limelight in the 50s, initially made of canvas and used by mailmen to deliver mail. With passage of time and the advent of corporate culture, messenger bags made with leather have gained popularity among modern professionals for their hint at formal yet functional aesthetic.

• Satchels come in a variety of designs, sizes and shapes. Messenger bag is the one that has a crossbody strap, long enough to allow hanging the bag by the lower back or side while commuting outdoors in any capacity.
• Intended to carry mail initially and now important work stuff and material, a faithful messenger bag will always have secure closures (zippers, straps, push locks etc.) to ensure security and safe carry of its inhabitants

The Functionality Aspect

The basic functional ideology of a satchel messenger bag revolves around assistance in carrying work stuff with travel whether you walk, ride a bike or catch a bus etc. The bag is a horizontal rectangle sack that’s spacious enough with compartments, different pocket options and a half or full front cover. The long strap along the bag allows you to hang it cross body or on one shoulder, whichever way suits you and access the content without having to remove the bag. Leather messenger bags and satchels are a great way to organize yourself for work which should also be the basic purpose of any professional bag. Modern day satchels and messenger bag designs have options that allow you to carry multiple loads comprising laptop, documents, accessories, personal and precious belongings in dedicated compartments etc. at one place.

Fairbanks Brown Leather Messenger Bag

Style Element

As satchels and messenger bags are associated with professional use, they`re often perceived synonymously with briefcases and have a similar style element of authority attached to them but in a sleek different way as they might not be as bulging or heavy in look, a briefcase might be. Their compact and sleek look may provide a smarter touch to your professional appearance so choose wisely, keeping your office environment and internal, external stakeholders in mind. Take it this way, A senior corporate banker may go for an aviator style briefcase to support his seasoned and matured personality, exuding authority in formal settings he finds himself in mostly, as compared to an aspiring sales professional whose on the go most of the time, meeting creative, busy people like him all the time.

Of course, leather has an ingrained style element of its own which cannot help but reveal its true stylish character over time. To sum up, a leather messenger or a leather satchel bag can be the perfect blend of style and functionality together to go with your overall style statement at work.

Babylon Vintage Satchel Messenger Bag

Pros and Cons of Leather Satchel Messenger Bags

Let`s focus first on some obvious points that make a strong case to buy a messenger bag as compared to going for another type of bag:

• A messenger bag`s compact size makes it easier to carry as compared to other professional bags while earning the same brownie points on style consideration.
• You can walk or bike with it and access the stuff inside the bag at the same time without requiring to remove it as it hangs by your side through the long cross body strap which might not be the case with let`s say, a backpack.
• As compared to other cross body shoulder bags, a messenger or satchel can definitely store a lot more so it`s much superior in functionality as compared to a handbag or sling bag.
• Carrying a leather satchel definitely looks much more professional as compared to a backpack which might look rather academic or geeky at times. Then again, it depends on the nature of your profession and work setting. Tech industry and other engineering sectors have increasing acceptance of backpacks whereas an aspiring service industry professional i.e. banker, lawyer or an oil firm executive etc. cant compromise on anything that makes them appear clumsy or lacking style.

However, there are points that should be considered before buying a satchel or messenger bag so that you don’t regret afterwards:

• As with many other cross body bags, while wearing them for a longer duration, the strap going across your body may feel burdensome and you may feel like you want to remove it.
• They might become difficult to balance and may move to and fro if half full or don’t have weight distributed across the bag properly which isn’t the case with backpacks as they`re easier to balance on both shoulders with separate shoulder straps.

Difference and Similarities Between a Messenger Bag & Briefcase

Briefcase are tradition while a messenger bag or satchel is the extension of that tradition to meet the versatile desires of the modern professional world.

• Size and design can be the basic difference. Briefcase can be standard or burgeoning in size while a messenger bag can be sleek and minimalist.
• Briefcases aren’t historically suppoed to be worn across the body. Infact, they are often supposed to be carried by hand. Shoulder straps in briefcases are an evolved phenomena, while a messenger bag design serves the basic purpose of convenience to carry while walking through immigration counters to riding to work, thanks to long shoulder strap
• While initially designed to carry mail, documents and deliver newspaper to customers, with the passage of time and more acceptability in the modern work environment, the modern leather messenger bag has pockets and compartments similar to a briefcase that allows storage for laptops, documents, notebooks, stationery etc. together with a formal avatar.

What About Durability and Peace of Mind

As suggested countless times in other blogs on this website, leather is the most synonymous with strength, toughness and durability and is a go to when it comes to choosing on the material for bags and accessories to buy. This is no different with satchels and messenger bags.

Visit Leather Satchel Messenger Bags´ from the Alaskan Leather Company to experience functional and vintage leather satchel messenger bags, made with character. Born Tough