I like to shop, which doesn’t necessarily include buying.  In fact, I usually don’t if we are talking about places like Jermyn Street and Piccadilly. Although I have shopped and bought things there: It can get really expensive if you make a habit of buying in these shops.

Case in point (yes, bad pun intended)–I just learned that Swaine Adeney Brigg (SAB) made the iconic briefcase for James Bond in “From Russia With Love”.  I grew up with that in my mind.  There was a kid’s toy version made of it, but it was definitely NOT the quality of the SAB case!

It makes sense since SAB makes “bespoke luggage for Aston Martin owners – think Aston Martin and you cannot help but think James Bond. 007 is one of our customers too.”

Q issued 007 with a range of explosive spy gadgetry. One of Bond’s most memorable weapons was the black leather briefcase issued to him in “From Russia with Love”.

Swaine Adeney Brigg made this case. Within its distinctive red skiver lining, the case hid 20 rounds of ammunition and gold coins, plus the flat throwing knives used to dispatch villain Red Grant aboard the Orient Express. The case also usefully hid a 0.25 caliber AR7 folding rifle with infrared sight. (Used by Bond to shoot down the SPECTRE helicopter pilot who was dropping grenades on him at the end of the film.)

You don’t need to be Sean Connery to own 007’s attaché. We offer the Q-Branch briefcase as standard issue to all of our customers. It’s a must-have for collectors of James Bond memorabilia and 007 gadgets.

The case has no pockets in the lid, so is an open box inside. We will supply you with an exact replica of James Bond’s case that we made for the Bond movie; any modifications you choose to make are down to your own imagination.

Most of our customers ask for a pocket here, a strap there. But we can, of course, accommodate more unusual requests from agents in the field. Often, just a small twist on a classic design can turn your attaché case into a real talking point.

Given Bond was one for the good life, shopping at Jermyn Street, Picadilly, and Saville Row make sense.  Swaine Adeney Briggs is mentioned twice by Ian Fleming: first in From Russia With Love: “Q Branch had put together this smart-looking bag, ripping out the careful handiwork of Swaine and Adeney to pack fifty rounds of .25 ammunition, in two flat rows, between the leather and the lining of the spine.”They are also mentioned in You Only Live Twice, where Bond remarks: “I must get Swaine and Adeney to make me a two-yard-long walking stick.”

You can stop in at the store: 7, Piccadilly Arcade, Jermyn St, St. James’s, London. Failing the ability to make a personal visit, the case is available at: www.swaineadeneybrigg.com/store/swaine-adeney/attache-cases/sab-bond-35.

I will say that you should have a fair amount of loose change since this will set you back £1,995 for the basic case (options are extra).  Not to mention that SAB doesn’t mess with lesser craftsmen’s work: that should clue you in that you will be paying for nearly 300 years of English quality.

SAB is worth a visit if you are in the area (and look like you can afford to shop there…). You can read up about them online and in the book, In Good Hands: 250 Years of Craftsmanship at Swaine Adeney Brigg.

Oh, and if you do need a non-SB umbrella fixed in London, don’t bother with James Smith either.  Neither SAB or James Smith do repairs on umbrellas these days (well, SAB repairs their own, but not other makers).