The books are officially (highly) styled. Luxury lifestyle brand Coach last week unveiled a collection of book-themed bag charms for $95 each, tapping into the growing buzz around reading — a status symbol.
Featuring popular classics like Jane Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility” and Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”, 12 miniature books are stylish and readable according to the fashion brand.
“The new hyperfixation: reading with the charm of our book,” the brand posted on social media on Wednesday.
Coach said its spring 2026 “Discover Your Story” campaign was “inspired by the renewed cultural embrace of long-form storytelling.”
“In a world shaped by fragmentation, digital overload and constant acceleration, many have described books and long-form storytelling as a refuge — a way to slow down, reflect and feel a sense of belonging,” the company’s chief marketing officer, June Silverstein, said of Gen Z in a statement.
It has been publicized that Reading has experienced a major cultural renaissance in recent years. Book clubs have grown in popularity as one of Gen Z and Millennials’ most social scenes, and the act of carrying a book in public is common enough to be fodder for jokes about “performance” reading.
Book-related discussions thrive online in spaces like BookTalk, Bookstagram, and BookThreads, which have grown into massive communities on their respective social media platforms. And several celebrities, including Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, and Natalie Portman, have found success starting their own online book clubs.
The coach teased the release of her book Charms in a series of social media posts starring actors Elle Fanning and Storm Reid, WNBA player Paige Bukers and musicians SOYEON, Lilas and Shan Yichun.
The company said it has partnered with Penguin Random House in the United States and independent publishers across China, Japan and Korea in an effort to connect with the books’ authors. Its book collection includes titles by Japanese writers Natsu Miyashita and Riku Onda, Korean writers Sung Haena and Hwang Bo-reum, and Chinese author Yan Xiaoyu.
“We purposefully brought together partners from different parts of culture — fashion, literature, sports and digital culture — because Gen Z doesn’t feel like they belong in one lane,” Silverstein said. “Our role is not to speak for communities, but to create shared spaces where multiple voices can gather around a belief in the power of storytelling and the courage it takes to make it come true.”
The charms, some of which sold out quickly while others were not yet available for purchase, created a frenzy of excitement online. But Coach isn’t the only luxury fashion brand that has turned to literature as the new “it” accessory.
Last month, Dior introduced its own book cover collection, featuring tote bags embroidered with illustrations of first-edition book covers for famous 19th- and 20th-century literary works, including a “Dracula” tote that retails for $3,550 and a smaller “Les Liaisons Dangereuses” for $260.
In 2024, Miu Miu launched the Summer Reads activation in cities around the world, where the Italian brand gifted visitors with copies of two of three classics: “A Woman” by Sibilla Alleramo, “Persuasion” by Jane Austen and “Forbidden Notebook” by Alba de Céspedes. The initiative comes shortly after Miu Miu hosted her own literary club spotlighting works by Aleramo and de Cespedes.
And in 2024, Saint Laurent opened a bookstore in Paris, which the company claims offers everything from rare books to Saint Laurent-branded editions of “subversive publications and out-of-print music recordings or original productions.”
