Buy It Once: The Things I Own That Should Outlast Me

I've owned a briefcase and a backpack for years that both slump over the second I set them down. Every day, they bug me a little. Neither one is broken, so neither one ever gets replaced. They just sit in the middle ground of "good enough."

That middle ground is where most of our stuff lives. It's cheap enough to buy without thinking and bad enough that you're shopping for its replacement in three years.

I've slowly moved the other way. Fewer things, bought once, built to be repaired, and better with age. Here's how I think about it, and the five things I own that I expect to outlast me.

Cheap Things Are Expensive

The price tag is the wrong number to look at. The right one is cost per use.

Quick example. Say you carry a bag every workday, about 250 days a year:

• A $120 bag that lasts 3 years: 750 uses, about 16 cents per use. Then you buy it again.
• A $400 bag that lasts 20 years: 5,000 uses, about 8 cents per use. And it looks better in year 10 than it did on day one.

The cheaper bag costs twice as much per use, and you get to shop for it again and again. Your money isn't the only cost, either. Your time and attention are too, and so is the small daily annoyance of using something you don't love.

What Makes Something Last a Lifetime

Not everything expensive lasts. Plenty of luxury goods are just regular goods with a logo. Before I buy, I look for four things:

1. A real guarantee. Not 1 year. Lifetime, or close to it, from a company that has been around long enough to honor it.
2. A repair path. Can the brand (or a local shop) fix it, refinish it, or replace a part? If the only fix is "buy a new one," walk away.
3. Materials that age well. Waxed canvas, leather, aluminum, and steel pick up character. Plastic and coated synthetics just wear out.
4. A design that doesn't date. If it looks the same as it did 50 years ago, it'll probably still look right in 50 more.

Here's what passes that test for me.

1. A Solid Timepiece

My two go-to watches right now are the Bulova Lunar Pilot and the Tissot PRX Powermatic 80.

The Lunar Pilot has the better story. On Apollo 15 in 1971, the crystal popped off Commander Dave Scott's NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster. For his third moonwalk on August 2, he wore a backup Bulova chronograph instead. It's the only privately owned watch ever worn on the moon's surface, and it sold at auction for $1.625 million in 2015. The Lunar Pilot is Bulova's modern take on it.

The PRX is the opposite: a clean, 1970s-style steel watch with an automatic movement and an 80-hour power reserve. Take it off Friday night and it's still running Monday morning.

Why it lasts: a good mechanical or well-built watch can be serviced for decades. Nothing in it is designed to go obsolete. Compare that to a smartwatch, which is e-waste in 4 or 5 years no matter how well you treat it.

What to look for: a brand with a service network, a steel case, sapphire crystal if you can get it, and a design you'd still wear at 70.

2. Rimowa Classic Cabin

My carry-on is a Rimowa Classic Cabin in aluminum. Rimowa has been making suitcases since 1898, and the grooved aluminum shell has barely changed in decades.

Why it lasts: Rimowa gives a lifetime guarantee on suitcases bought since July 25, 2022. It covers everything functional (wheels, handles, locks) for the life of the case. Cosmetic wear isn't covered, and that's fine. The dents and scuffs are the point. Every trip leaves a mark, and after a few years the case tells the story of where you've been.

What to look for: a shell you can repair, wheels and handles that can be swapped out, and a real guarantee.

3. Filson 24 Hour Tin Cloth Briefcase

This is the newest addition, and the one replacing the two slumping bags from the top of this post. I went with the Filson 24 Hour Tin Cloth Briefcase in Dark Tan, and I waited for a sale to get it at 25% off.

Filson has been making gear in Seattle since 1897. The 24 Hour is made from waxed Tin Cloth with bridle leather handles. Nearly every review I read said some version of the same thing: it's their favorite bag they've ever owned.

Why it lasts: Filson's Unfailing Guarantee covers every item for the lifetime of the item against failure of materials and workmanship. Their repair team would rather fix it than replace it. And waxed canvas gets better as it creases and fades. A year of daily carry and it'll look like it's always been mine.

What to look for: waxed canvas or full-grain leather, heavy hardware, and a brand that runs its own repair shop.

4. Montblanc Pen

I write with a Montblanc rollerball. A pen sounds like a strange thing to spend real money on, until you count how many cheap ones you've lost or thrown away.

Why it lasts: the pen is the permanent part. The ink is the only part you replace, and refills cost about $12 each. One tip: try the refill sizes. Mine came with a Medium, and I prefer the finer line of a Fine.

There's a second benefit, too. You don't lose a pen you care about. You don't leave it at a restaurant or hand it to someone at the bank and forget it. Owning one good pen changes how you treat it.

What to look for: a metal or resin body, standard refills you can buy for decades, and a brand that services its pens.

5. Barbour Waxed Jacket

The Barbour waxed jacket might be the best example of all. These jackets are passed down in families on purpose. Barbour's archive has a jacket from 1910 that's still in excellent condition.

Why it lasts: Barbour started its re-waxing and repair service in 1921, and it still runs today. You can send your jacket in to be re-waxed, repaired, or altered at any time, and they re-wax or repair tens of thousands of jackets a year. They recommend a re-wax about once a year, which you can also do yourself at home with a tin of wax.

What to look for: a brand that will re-proof, repair, and alter what it sells. That's the clearest sign a company expects its product to last.

How to Start Buying This Way

You don't need to replace everything at once. That would defeat the purpose. Here's the approach I use:

1. Start with what annoys you daily. The thing you touch every day and quietly hate is the best place to upgrade. For me, it was the bags.
2. Set a price and wait for it. Good brands run sales. I decided I'd pay about 20% under full price for the Filson and waited. It came at 25% off.
3. Check the guarantee and repair options before you buy. If you can't find them on the brand's site, that's your answer.
4. Sell what the new piece replaces. Don't let your closet turn into a museum of old purchases. One in, one out.
5. Take care of it. Re-wax the jacket. Service the watch. Swap the refill. Ten minutes a year keeps these things going for decades.

The Real Payoff

The math matters, but it isn't the best part. The best part is owning fewer things that you actually like.

There's no low-grade annoyance every time you pick up your bag. No guilt about the pile of half-broken stuff in the closet. Just a short list of things that work, look better every year, and will someday be worth handing to someone else.

Buy it once. Take care of it. Let it get some character.