Workplay Bags at the Vitality Show

Last Thursday I went along to the Vitality Show at Earl’s Court. I was interested to see what the show had to offer, but my main reason for going was to meet Guy Mathiot, the designer behind Workplay Bags and to see some of the new designs that they have in the pipeline.

If you’ve been following this blog for any time you’ll have read about how much I love Workplay. They make innovative bags for women on the move and I love the stylish yet practical designs. I own 3 of their bags already.

• the Fleetfoot II – simply the best running bag I’ve ever tried;
• the Gymwise II which is perfect for carrying workout clothes to work or as a race day bag;
• the Goddess II which I use for weekends away or as carry on luggage

I also own a LOT of other bags – all shapes and sizes for many different purposes. But, I’ve never really come across a bag for work which allows me to carry gym kit, shoes – be that trainers for the gym or heels to change into (it’s a London thing…), alongside the things I need for the working day. I generally carry an A5 Filofax around with me but can also envisage a time when I’d need to transport A4 documents and maybe a laptop, sometimes a lunchbox.

I use my Gymwise when I’m doing yoga before work but it isn’t big enough to fit in everything I also need for the working day and I generally have to have a handbag with me as well. It’s also very obviously a ‘sports’ bag – perfect most of the time but there are occasions when I don’t necessarily want everyone to know that I’ve just come from the gym!

So I was super excited when Guy tweeted about a new bag that Workplay have in development  – the Workactiv – and mentioned that he’d have a prototype available to view at the Vitality Show. It sounded like just the thing that I’d been looking for – a backpack with space for both fitness and work gear. So I made my way to Earls Court and made a beeline for the Workplay stand to see the bag for myself.

It was great to meet Guy, the creative brains behind the bags that I have come to love so much and he enthusiastically showed me the Workactiv – and took me through all the many features. There’s some really clever stuff going on in this bag which can be worn comfortably on the back but also quickly transforms into something which can be carried in the hand.

Having now seen it I think it’s best described as an ‘Executive Commuter Backpack’. It’s sleek and stylish and has a huge number of clever features, as I’ve come to expect from Workplay Bags. And importantly it looks great – not obviously a gym bag and something that I could definitely take into a meeting with a customer without feeling scruffy.

As with all Workplay Bags it’s really comfortable once it’s on the body and doesn’t bounce around. It’s probably a bit heavy to think about running with, but it would be perfect for walking to and from work, if that’s your thing. I can also imagine the bag coming in very handy when travelling with work, possibly even for an overnight stay.

It was great to see a bag which is still in design stage. Even better, I’m getting to try it out for a few days next week to give Guy feedback which will hopefully help to make the bag even better, if that’s possible. I’m really excited about getting my hands on one of these once it’s in production!

For news on when the Workactiv will be available as well as other new exciting products that are in development sign up for the newsletter on the Workplay website.