Every product is carefully selected by our editors. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission.

Eight famous names reflect on the utilitarian bag that set the canvas tote craze in motion.

Look around. See a tote bag? The canvas kind with some sort of graphic on either side? Maybe a dozen or so are taking up space in one of your drawers. Maybe you lugged one to and from work the other day. Thank L.L. Bean.

"Introduced as Bean’s ice carrier way back in 1944, the Boat and Tote was billed as a bag made of builders’ canvas for hauling ice 'from car to ice chest," the Leon Leonwood Bean-founded brand writes in the bag's bio. "Tested to hold up to 500 pounds, it’ll carry more than you can carry. We promise."

500 pounds? That's quite the pack. Chances are you aren't hauling your bodyweight in farmer's bounty, but there's still reason for extra room — especially in a city, where the likelihood you can dump a day's worth of stuff into the back of a sedan is incredibly slim. Having a tough-wearing bag capable of carrying it all is a necessity, and L.L. Bean's Boat and Tote is up for any task. At the same time, as utilitarian as it is, there are assumptions to be made about someone you spot carrying one — or at least there were.

Die, Workwear!'s Derek Guy writes that initially, "with a nearly free monogram service, it was the cheapest way to look rich." He's right. In fact, the service still exists and only costs an additional $8. Personalization has long captivated consumers by offering both a way into "the club" and a way to stand out. (Customized L.L. Bean bags are all the rage on TikTok right now, too. An account called @ironicboatandtote documents user-submitted monograms aplenty.)

"But like much of prep, the bag was also fashionable because it suggested something about the carrier: East Coast, born-into-wealth, well-educated, stoic, and wry," Guy continues. "It’s a symbol of a particular cross-section of America that overlaps Yankee, Ivy League, and WASP."

Nowadays the tote is more universal — as abundant as trucker jackets and OK pizza. Print shops crank out custom ones for all sorts of events. Stores overseas — namely in Japan and Korea — resell American-made ones for 200-plus-percent market value. Retailers of varying sizes stock them at the checkout counter. Magazines pitch theirs as a perk to subscribing. (The New Yorker's tote is only available to subscribers, but there are bootlegs all over Etsy.) Above all else, they signal a bare minimum amount of mindfulness about the environment. They have to be better than plastic bags, right? (See: The Atlantic's stab at answering this question.)

Having an assortment of unused ones that stamp your patronage at particular places isn't much of an improvement on our collective consumerism problem. We'd argue it's better to invest in one bag — and one bag that'll last. Why not choose one like the Boat and Tote, which has been beloved for more than 75 years? Plus, it counts millions as loyal customers — from designers and dock workers to parents and luxury-leaning celebrities. We spoke to some of them to understand why.

"The L.L. Bean Boat and Tote is the most classic and democratic way to haul your stuff. It's customizable, hard-wearing, and discreet. A holdall for anyone and everyone!" — Chris Black, partner of Public Announcement, co-host of How Long Gone podcast

"The Boat and Tote is such a classic piece of Americana. When I was designing my collaboration with L.L.Bean last year, I was lucky enough to get access to their archives and see some of the original designs. One thing I learned through that research was the origin of the style. It was first created for practical reasons — to move ice and goods on and off of boats (hence, the name). The size, design and durability proved popular and now, over 100 years later, we’re still using it." — Todd Snyder, designer