Clutch styles, textured leathers, patent, grey and violet are considered absolute must-haves. GLS defines three trend themes for the 2008/09 Autumn/Winter season: Smooth - Smart - Sampled

Smooth

• High-quality leather with a soft touch
• Natural hues and harmonious leather colors
• Deconstructed pouches, casual landscape formats with front pockets, fashionable backpacks

Smart 

• Light gray and stone tones, mud, darks, black
• Shine (patent, spazzolato) and metallics
• Unmistakable language of forms, strictly constructed styles
• Clutch bags, shoppers, handle bags, short-handled bags, weekenders

Sampled

• Basic tones complemented with striking color highlights
• Casual materials, pleasant-to-touch leathers, high-quality nylons, canvas, suede
• Decorations such as pleats, topstitching, ornamental jewels
• Cross-over shoulder strap bag, saddle bags, shoppers

Colors
The new color ranges are subdued and inconspicuous. Dark night tones including black complemented by mud, grey, light beige and stone versions as well as natural leather tones form the basis of the collections. Vividness is ensured by striking splashes of color that are used more frequently than last winter. Violet in all its different shades is considered the ultimate trend color.  The required suspense, however, is also created by dark red, burgundy, orange and some occasional petrol and green accents. Metallics continue to feature prominently in the collections; they are less clear in their color statement now becoming more ambiguous color blends
like so many of the colors next season.

Materials
Quality and value are the buzzwords for materials. This trend not only goes hand in hand with first-class leathers but also increasingly foregoes synthetics. The leathers used are fine-pored, as soft as kid gloves, slightly buffed or feature a distinct grain. 

Often materials are additionally treated to provide them with striking surface textures. Mock croc and snake are still in demand but new embossed and treated surfaces (such as patent croc with a metallic finish) feature ever more frequently now. In the sportier, more casual segment refined, shiny nylons, suede and casual canvas are used. The glamour theme remains key. Designers continue to prefer patent leathers for their interpretations but more and more elaborate surface treatments are now found alongside these strictly high-gloss leathers. Even the long neglected spazzolato leathers return to the collections and hone in on this theme.

Formats
The choice of bag formats ranges from very big to very small. Mini bags are just as ‘in' as ‘huge' weekenders and XXL styles, which seem to have passed their climax now, however. This is why big bags are now increasingly offered with a ‘little sister'. The No.1 bag format is the clutch bag. It will not only stay in fashion but will now also come with numerous compelling size and design variations. Shoppers experience a renaissance and come in host of sizes. In addition to this, collections offer more rigid doctor's bags and handle bags, voluminous landscape formats (preferably featuring front pockets) and soft-line pouches.

Photos by Rene Tillmann / Messe Dusseldorf