Bag’n Baggage

Called in to ask if they had replacement wheels for a Chaps brand luggage. They said they only carry two brands. So not helpful for me. I will have to keep looking since I need this done soon for an upcoming trip. They do offer a service where they send it to a repair center which takes 3 to 5 weeks. So if you can wait it might be an option for you.

I had an appointment at the Apple Store (like everyone else apparently) but arrived at the mall early. I was walking past Bag’n Baggage and remembered that I had a piece of luggage at home that needed repair. I stopped in to ask a quick question. I walked out 3 minutes later with the part I needed plus a quick tutorial on how to repair the item. The staff stopped what they were doing and immediately focused on my need. I walked out so impressed I took out my phone and jotted down a reminder to leave these guys a positive review the next chance I got. So here I am. I realize all of this seems quite basic but I can’t emphasis how kind and attentive the staff really was. I will be back!

Very helpful staff. Extremely knowledgeable. Good collection of various brands. They have sales going on for a few brands that you prefer. In short you are most likely to find something that fits your requirements and budget s well. Also they are open till 9pm most of the days. Thats a plus.

OK, I need to be fair here, and not just review the length of time it took Bag’n Baggage to repair my acoustic guitar case (which was way too long). After all, they have an outside source that does that, not part of BnB, so it wasn’t «really» their fault. But, they (BnB) DID tell me it would be a 2-​week turnaround, so they were a little inaccurate in their estimate, which WAS their fault. It turned out to be SIX WEEKS.
But I wasn’t in a great hurry, so no harm, no foul. I got the case back in good repair, and I’m satisfied as to the quality of the job done.
That being said, Bag’n Baggage is a unique lil’ place. Like any «boutique» sort of store, they’re sort of pricey, but they have a unique line of products that you may be hard-​pressed to find elsewhere. Some stuff you don’t really need (at least I don’t), but a lot of USEFUL stuff too, especially for the frequent traveler. I ran across at least one thing I wasn’t even aware EXISTED. That would be the TSA-​APPROVED luggage locks. The «civilian» person won’t be able to open your luggage, but the locks are designed so a TSA agent CAN open the lock «if needed», which is better than if they have to CUT OFF a lock you’ve put on there that isn’t TSA-​Approved. Now, while this WON’T protect you against the rogue TSA employee who’s also a THIEF (heard enough stories to be wary of them), it’ll stop that maid at the Hotel from «liberating» a few of your items, so that’s an example of a useful item BnB carries (albeit at a higher price than I paid for the same item elsewhere).
I’m a sucker for certain things: Ice chests/​coolers, musical & kitchen gadgets, and little cases to carry stuff in (the latter is why my hangin’ around BnB too long could prove to be my downfall). Therefore, I could go OVERBOARD easily in a place like BnB!
I didn’t interact with the staff enough to be able to evaluate their knowledge of their product line; I was mainly interested in my guitar case repair. But even if they aren’t knowledgeable, everything’s out on the Sales Floor for you to poke, prod, zip and unzip, and see if ya like it. Their line of products seem to be well-​made (and they should be, for the pretty penny you’ll pay!).
As far as a latch repair on practically ANYTHING, they seem to be maybe the ONLY place you can turn to, at least they were the only place I could find, and I did quite a bit of research before taking my case there. But considering the time it took to get my item back, DON’T trust their «estimate» of how long it’ll take (or multiply by a factor of THREE). And if you have something like that in need of repair, do if WELL IN ADVANCE of any planned trip, so you won’t be left in a lurch.
Of course, if you don’t get YOUR suitcase back in time for your trip, they’ll be more than glad to sell ya one of THEIRS! :-)
Bottom line: Bag’n Baggage is a cool little «niche» store that you should check out. I can’t really think of another store that fits in that niche but BnB, so their place in the Retail World is probably secure.
larrythediner
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