What Balenciaga's $4,590 Mistake Teaches You About Spotting Quality

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The best way to learn about quality is contrasting execution fails with successes. Hems are generally supposed to blend into the surface, so analyzing a successful edge finish will be difficult. They're meeting their goals precisely when you notice them the least. But when they fail, even a tiny discrepancy can ruin the allure of a piece – and clarify what success does look like.

Leather goods are celebrated for the quality of leather, of course, but it's the edge that tells you more about the overall bag than the handfeel of the material. Manufacturing standards usually go in bundles; you'll have a certain level for the edges, hardware, and materials rather than a mix of, say, a stellar edge and a cheap buckle. Edges don't get as much attention as hardware or embellishment, so manufacturers that produce refined edges signal investment elsewhere in the bag. And better leather tends to be easier to finish in a refined way, so the edge will inform you about more than just the tiny surface around the perimeter.

Balenciaga is a bit of an anomaly because their hardware and leathers are comfortably within the standards of their price tier, but they had a creative director who designed pieces that defy expectations on purpose. Demna trolled a lot. Some trolls were loud, some subtle. In 2022, the brand launched an ad campaign that crossed a line well beyond merchandise.

Balenciaga Rodeo: the Concept

The Rodeo bag got my attention as a riff on the Hermès Kelly. The Rodeo's short flap, turnlock hardware, and proportions all hark back to the Kelly. With its slouchy leather and deliberately opened front pouch, it looks like a Kelly that's been melted as a parody. Reimagining an iconic design is a vital function of fashion. It's a way to relate the present to the past, and it's often funny.

So far, so good.

But the Rodeo introduces an element that detracts from its social commentary. The design was engineered with a sloppy flaw, and this sloppy flaw will be our tool to contrast with luxury standards – so we can get closer to them across other price points.

Balenciaga Rodeo: the Sad Reality

The top edge is cut and then glazed, which is a process that results in a shiny coating on the cut edge of the leather. Glazing is similar to a manicure that starts with trimming, then sanding, a base coat, polish, and a top coat, but the glazing materials for leather are different from those for nails.

When you use the bag, you widen it to get better access. The top of the bag, therefore, is supposed to be pliable. Glazing can be applied to pliable, moving parts, but it's advised for the flex zones to be thinner – both the leather and the glazing. Think: the folding part of a wallet (1 below) is thinner than the panels that have the credit card and change slots (2). Thicker glazed edges are less likely to crack when they keep their shape steady. For example, rounded bag handles mostly stay in a particular arc and don't have to fold dramatically. The more they bend, the likelier the glazing is to crack.

Technique matters, too. Glazing has to be built up in thin coats; a single heavy application can crack with minimal use.

What we have at Balenciaga is mind-boggling. The top edge is both thick and placed on a part designed to bear motion: folded and unfolded, like an accordion opening and closing. The corner with the divider is the most egregious part. This corner will experience the most stress from stretching out every time someone reaches for objects in the bag, yet it's glazed with the thickest patch.