Queues for designer handbags are a familiar sight outside the burnished doors of Louis Vuitton and Hermès, but from Wednesday they could be trailing from the checkouts of 600 Australian supermarkets.
British designer Anya Hindmarch, a favourite of royalty and supermodels, is bringing her latest bag to Woolworths. Unlike her $3500 gold clutches, or embellished designs toted by Princess Catherine and Kendall Jenner, the green Universal Bag costs only $20, but for Hindmarch its environmental impact is the epitome of modern luxury.
“There’s nothing less luxurious than things that do harm,” Hindmarch says from her London studio. “Caring about beautiful things and caring about the right way to behave is exciting.”
Anya Hindmarch’s luxury reusable shopping bags will launch in Australia at Woolworths stores.Credit: Max Mason-Hubers
“In most supermarkets there are already bags for life which are not the answer because they don’t last long enough. They’re not nice enough that you want to use them. We came up with a bag for life which is guaranteed for 10 years, made from completely recycled materials that’s recyclable in an easy way.”
Hindmarch launched the precursor to the Universal Bag at British supermarket Sainsbury’s in 2007. The “I am not a plastic bag” became an instant sustainability status symbol, attracting more than 80,000 shoppers on its launch day. Its success paved the way for the even more environmentally friendly Universal Bag.
Dame Anya Hindmarch after being made a Dame Commander of the British Empire during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace on February 18, 2025.Credit: Getty Images
With its school uniform stripes in green and white, the Woolworths version is the 20th edition of the initiative, already available in supermarkets in Britain, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore. Universal Bags have been credited with saving more than 230 tonnes of plastic from landfill, or in British measurements, the equivalent weight of more than 19 double-decker buses.
“This is bigger than just supermarkets,” Hindmarch says. “It’s about eco, not ego. We are open to discussions with any supermarket that approaches us to work on a Universal Bag.”
“I have to say, Australia inspires me because I feel like what you have done in banning plastic is so cool and reflects on the country. It makes you think about Australia as this progressive. That’s why I think people do care.”
Hindmarch uses her Universal Bag to stow her gym gear and carry lunch to the office, but she did swap it for a silver version of her $3500 Crisp Packet clutch to visit Buckingham Palace in February when she received damehood for services to fashion and business. At the investiture she chatted to King Charles about landfill.
“My dream is that this becomes the bag that everyone uses so we can keep things from landfill,” she said.
“Too much, too expensive and too much to show off is an old-fashioned luxury. All of us having some values … I think that’s a really exciting change in fashion.
“It makes you feel a bit silly for the way you’ve behaved, all those years ago of just excess.”
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