Crowd & Co. | A Cooper & Hill Shopping Revolution

As I've got older and (potentially...) slightly wiser, I've found myself leaning more towards investment pieces. Instead of fast fashion, I tend to opt more for things that are high quality and will last beyond the time it takes for the next issue of Vogue to hit the shelves. Problem is, in the long run, it's fab, but it can be a little, well, a lot more expensive. 

That's where a fab new concept from a company called Cooper & Hill comes in. Based in the UK with 25 years experience manufacturing beautiful, high quality leather bags for the high end market, Cooper and Hill are a company determined to make luxury affordable. The company offer a range of ready to wear bags as well as made to order items plus a unique bespoke service which allows you to create a bag to your own individual design. 

An email dropped into my inbox a couple of weeks back with all of the magic words that a 20-something handbag-addict wants to hear. Premium quality, handmade in the UK leather bags, at prices that won't make you need a stiff gin and tonic before peeking at your bank statement. 

The concept that the London based company are pioneering goes by the name of Crowd & Co. In effect, it's power in numbers. They will place a range of products on their site with a link to register your interest. There's no comitment to buy whatsoever, but you just register your interest with an email address. The more interests an item gains, the lower the price will be driven.

For example, take the company's Saville Mini Portfolio, a beautiful leather portfolio, big enough to pop your tablet in with plenty of handy pockets for all your other bits and pieces like your phone, cards and pens. Basically, a bloggers dream! 

Anyway, the portfolio usually retails at £159. By the beauty of collective purchasing, people registering their interest within the allotted time and sharing it around a little on social media, the price can be driven down to as little as £40 according to the clear targets of 250, 500, 750 and 1000 interests. Once the time is up, everyone that registered is contacted via email with the final price and an opportunity to purchase, no strings attached. Amazing right? 

You can check them out at www.cooperandhill.com, and take a peek at their current leathery offerings, there's still a while to go before the time on the current products is up and the next ones are introduced so it's definitely worth a look, after all, it is payday!