Milan fashion week shows off its clutch control with new A4 bags - The Guardian

Givenchy's clutch bag featuring a print of a doberman already has a significant waiting list. Photograph: REX/Gregory Pace/BEI

They are rectangular in shape, fastened with a zip and should be held purposefully under one arm. The world's most image-conscious footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo, loves them, and now the oversized clutch has become the bag of choice for the front row at Milan fashion week.

Familiar in the corporate world – where they're more likely to be known as "document holders" – these A4-sized receptacles have replaced the bulky "it" bags that were worn on the crook of an elbow and then stashed on the floor. Jane Bruton, editor of Grazia, has noticed the trend. Seen on the front row with a Louis Vuitton handbag – hers had redundant handles – she was preferring to style it as a clutch. "I'm not using the handles," she declared.

This tallies with Donatella Versace's new handbag philosophy. The Palazzo bag, which the brand debuted in its catwalk show on Friday night, is a hold-all that folds into a clutch. It was carried in both incarnations by models. Elsewhere, Emporio Armani had designs in appliqué leather, sequins and in pleated silk. They all came in the A4 shape.

With its boardroom associations, the new bag of choice means business. Generally lighter but bigger than a regular bag, it can be held on the lap and gives easy access to the show tickets, iPads and flat shoes "for later" that a fashion editor carries.

Sophia Neophitou, editor-in-chief at 10 magazine, has made the transition – she was carrying a Bao Bao Issey Miyake clutch, with triangular pattern in red. "I reached the point where I was sick of trying to cram a lipstick, money and phone into a pocket-sized bag," she said. "We have too much technology now. The big clutch is a new solution and it's fabulous."

Jack Sunnucks, editor of Wonderland magazine, was in Milan carrying what he termed a "male clutch" – an idea taken up by a fair few of the men in Milan for the shows. Despite being seduced by the trend, he sees the oversized clutch as "a retro feminist step". He says that the whole point of Coco Chanel adding a chain handle to the iconic quilted bag was to enable women to keep their hands free.

As with most trends that develop on the front row, the message of the accessory is key. "It's a bag that says I don't have to do anything," said Sunnucks. He identified a mood the clutch symbolises. "It's a bit frosty," he said. "It says get out of the way of my clutch, don't talk to me." In an environment where carrying nothing but a ticket and phone is the ultimate power play – implying a car waiting outside – the oversized clutch is the next best thing.

Bruton admitted to the power semantics too. "If I'm walking to work I carry a big bag, then when I get to the office I pull out the clutch," she said. "It looks better at meetings than arriving with an overstuffed rucksack."

The clutch effect is starting to show in retail too. At matchesfashion.com, buyers report that several bags have already sold out, including a design with a giant eye from French brand Kenzo and a heart-shaped one from Burberry. Bold designs tend to be popular. A clutch with a print of a doberman by Givenchy has yet to reach the site but already has a significant waiting list. "The oversized clutch is a trend from the catwalk that our clients have really embraced," said senior womenswear buyer Natalie Kingham. "The big change in attitude is that clutches, particularly the oversized ones, are no longer for evening. They work day to night."

Price is an element of this trend. While a more traditional tote or hold-all designer bag often comes in at four figures, these clutches are significantly cheaper – around the £200 mark. This feels much more in tune with the times. The trend represents the final nail in the coffin of the heavy bag with multiple straps. "That seems so over," said Sunnucks. "It seem more grown up to have a huge wallet."

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