How to Design Your Own Luggage

Last year, my husband worked with ROAM to design his own suitcase. When it arrived at the house, I admit it: I was a little jealous. Of course, my first thought was, “That’s not how I would have designed my suitcase,” but that’s kind of the whole point. ROAM offers customers the opportunity to design a piece of luggage that’s totally unique and personal. So while I wouldn’t have chosen the colors my husband did, that’s exactly what made his suitcase so cool and unique to him.

Fast forward a year and ROAM reached out to Johnny again, letting him know that they had new colors available and inviting him to design another bag. Remembering the green glint of envy in my eyes the last time, he kindly passed the opportunity on to me, to design my own suitcase and write about it. I was thrilled!

RELATED: Johnny Jet’s Roam Luggage Review

Founded by former Tumi executives (Charlie Clifford, Tumi’s founder and Larry Lein, Tumi’s former executive vice president), ROAM is the world’s first and only premium luggage company that enables customers to fully color-customize their suitcase. As a design junkie, I absolutely love this level of customization.

How does it work?
ROAM suitcases are hard-sided spinners and designing your bag is super easy. I was impressed with how seamlessly their color customizing tool worked, both on my laptop and on my phone. The first step is to choose your suitcase. There are four sizes to choose from: a carry-on, a larger carry-on, a medium check-in and a large check-in. I selected the large check-in; now that we’re a family of four, my carry-on only days are over! Next, you start customizing each element of your suitcase by choosing the colors you want for the front shell, back shell, zipper, binding, wheels, handle and monogram patch. Here’s the color palette I chose, which you can see in my photos:

Front shell: Glasgow Gray
Back shell: Cornwall Slate
Trim: Bermuda Pink
Zipper: Vail White
Wheels: Bermuda Pink
Handle: Bermuda Pink
Monogram patch: Vail White

I played around with ROAM’s online color customization tool for a long while before deciding on my final color combo. There are so many different ways to design your bag – it’s quite fun to play with all the options. My favorite feature is the colored wheels – I just love how the pink wheels look on my bag. FYI: If you can’t decide on a color combination, you can choose from a curated collection of already-designed bags.

Construction
Every ROAM suitcase is handcrafted and made-to-order in the United States. The exterior is made from lightweight US virgin polycarbonate and has ball bearing wheels. I can attest to the fact that even the large size of suitcase is super lightweight and glides with an effortless ease, even when fully packed. The adjustable telescopic handle has four height options, just another form of customization to help make your suitcase fully meet your needs. The suitcase zipper is water-resistant, a nice touch if you get stuck in the snow or rain and the carry handle is designed to lie flat in your bag to take up the least amount of space possible. The suitcases range in weight from 6.6 lbs to 10.3 lbs and in price from $495 to $550.

Overall
I love everything about my ROAM bag except for one thing: The interior has two open compartments. To secure them, you place compression dividers on top and strap them into place. I would much prefer that one side was fully enclosed with a zipper, to keep loose items securely in place. It’s a small detail but one that I think would vastly improve the bag.

Other than that, my ROAM suitcase is a dream. I absolutely couldn’t wait to take it on my first family road trip since the pandemic started, so it was first put to the test on our trip to Lido House in Newport Beach. When I placed my order, I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best but my suitcase looks even better in person and I love how utterly unique and personal it is. I’ll never have trouble spotting my bag on a baggage carousel chock-a-block with black wheelies again, that’s for sure!

Interested in designing your own luggage? Use this link to get $50 off your purchase. Plus, each suitcase comes with a 100-day, risk-free trial (rare for a custom item), so you can literally take your suitcase for a spin and see what you think. You won’t be disappointed!