Globetrotting with… Susie Cave

The cult fashion designer has created a ravishing new collection for Globe-Trotter. Here she shares the fascinating roots of her enduring love of Globe-Trotter – all thanks to Leonard Cohen – as well as her favourite travel songs, books and destinations

Whether it’s a well-travelled case that’s been around for decades, or a shiny new suitcase about to embark on its debut adventure, every Globe-Trotter tells a story.

But the story behind the glamorous new collection from cult fashion designer Susie Cave is one that has come full circle: a story of nostalgia, musical icons and enduring love.

The Vampire’s Wife x Globe-Trotter is a new capsule collection designed by Susie and comprising XL trunks, Cabin, Carry-On suitcases and vanity and jewellery cases. The two colourways make up two distinctive offerings: The Black Collection and ivory-coloured The Wedding Collection, which feature interiors in black sparkle velvet and blood red, respectively, with eye-catching gold-brass hardware and bat-embossed luggage tags.

The limited-edition collection has been many years in the making for Susie, who has been married to musician Nick Cave since 1999. ‘I have owned and loved Globe-Trotter luggage for as long as I can remember,’ she said. ‘To carry a thing of such classic elegance and beauty is such a pleasure.’

Susie was first introduced to Globe-Trotter by her friend, the legendary French photographer Dominique Issermann. She recalls:

‘One day, some time ago, while I was staying with Dominique at her house in Paris and I was packing to leave for London, I found I had run out of space in my luggage – a problem that endures to this day! – and so, Dominique gave me a suitcase that had belonged to Leonard Cohen. Dominique and Leonard had been lovers and together for many years, and he had given the suitcase to her. I cherished and used that suitcase endlessly, and it meant so much to me for so many reasons, and then when I met my husband, Nick, I gave it to him. It was the first thing that I ever gave to Nick, and it felt symbolic. Nick in turn used the suitcase for many years until it was recently moved into the care of a museum archive.’

Susie co-founded The Vampire’s Wife in 2014. The former model was discovered by Vogue photographer Steven Meisel on a flight to New York aged 14 and graced many fashion magazine covers, two Roxy Music albums and modelled for Vivienne Westwood for a decade. With her milky complexion and jet-black hair, Susie’s is a timeless and ethereal beauty and The Vampire’s Wife – named after one of her husband’s unfinished novels – is an expression of her gothic creativity. The brand’s Falconetti dress, with its distinctive body-skimming silhouette and jewel tones, was named “dress of the decade” by Vogue and has a slew of A-list fans, ranging from Alexa Chung to Catherine, Princess of Wales. Aside from its bestselling dresses, The Vampire’s Wife has expanded into alternative goods, from exquisite gold charms inspired by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds songs to the quintessentially gothic “Bonfire” candle. But the new Globe-Trotter collection is a bold and exciting new milestone for the brand, once again inspired by love and marriage.

‘It is for Nick that I have created The Black Collection for this Globe-Trotter collaboration,’ Susie explains. ‘As a musician, Nick is eternally on tour, and loves to carry handsome luggage. The Wedding Collection is inspired by a most beautiful vanity case, a wedding gift from my father to my mother that she carried on her honeymoon. As a young girl I was entranced by this beautiful piece of luggage – it is one of my earliest style memories. I hope you love and enjoy using these pieces as much as I did creating them.’

Globe-Trotting with Susie Cave

We asked Susie to share her favourite travel moments and recommendations

What is your favourite hotel?

Claridge’s Hotel, London. In my view it is the most glamorous hotel in the world, with its rich and magical history. It continues to retain its sense of opulence and splendour, while being very friendly and welcoming.

What’s the best meal you’ve had abroad?

Fish and chips anywhere in Melbourne, Australia. They are so good. There is a fish and chip shop on Acland Street that is amazing. I love to sit on the street in the sun and eat them with salt and vinegar.

What is your favourite travel book?

WG Sebald – The Rings of Saturn. This strange, dark travelogue circles around a mysterious man’s walking tour of Sussex. What appears to be a simple peripatetic exercise becomes intricate as he weaves into the narrative history and memory and esoteric knowledge. Absolutely fascinating book.

What is your favourite song that gives you a sense of wanderlust?

Kentucky Rain by Elvis Presley. My husband and I are great Elvis fans and this dramatic and melancholy late-period Elvis song of moving from town in search of a lost love is one of his absolute masterpieces.

What’s your go-to outfit for long-haul travel?

A black God’s True Cashmere tracksuit – a gift from Brad Pitt! The tracksuit is so heavy and oversized I can get completely lost in it. It’s like the softest, most stylish portable blanket. Completely and utterly gorgeous. It’s worth travelling just to snuggle up in this.

Where in the world do you find yourself returning to again and again?

Beautiful, welcoming Brighton, England. I travel a lot. Moving from city to city, country to country, but it is returning to Brighton, the place where we call home, that fills me with a kind of joyful relief, as if I can finally breathe again.

What city or country has surprised you the most?

Los Angeles. I never knew I could fall in love with this deeply weird “City of Dreams” so much. My husband and I lived there for a year or two around 2018/19 and got to know this improbable city, built in a desert, from the visions and aspirations of a handful of dreamers.

If you could click your fingers and be transported anywhere in the world for 24 hours, where would you go?

On the road, somewhere in the state of Arizona, reliving my honeymoon. My husband and I took a road trip around America, beginning in Arizona. It was a magical time for us both, aimlessly drifting around majestic America, eventually ending in New York. Next year we have promised each other we will do it again.