Johnny Coca Exits Louis Vuitton After Five Years Shaping the House’s Leather Goods Vision
Johnny Coca — one of the industry’s most influential handbag designers — has officially departed Louis Vuitton after five and a half years as the brand’s women’s leather goods and fashion accessories director.
The news marks the end of a significant chapter for Coca, whose career spans some of the most defining moments in modern luxury. Before his return to Vuitton in 2020, he had already built a cult following for his work alongside Phoebe Philo at Celine, where he helped redefine the modern luxury handbag. He later spent five years as creative director of Mulberry, steering the British label toward a more complete luxury lifestyle offering and introducing bestselling bag families such as Amberley and Iris.
Vuitton confirmed the departure on Tuesday, stating that Coca brought “expertise and creativity” to the house’s collections and successfully launched the Louis Vuitton Accessories Design Graduate Initiative. “The maison wishes him the very best in his future endeavors,” the statement added.
Coca expressed gratitude for his time at the French luxury giant and at its parent company, LVMH. “I am thankful for the opportunity to collaborate with such talented teams and to create extraordinary collections together. We honored the house’s heritage while projecting a bold creative vision,” he said. “Now it is time to continue my own path with the same passion and dedication. I will always cherish this chapter of my career.”
His next move has not yet been revealed.
Coca originally began his career at Louis Vuitton, working in leather goods between 1996 and 2000, before taking roles at Bally and later joining Celine as design director for leather goods, accessories, footwear, and jewelry. Born in Seville and raised in Paris, the multilingual designer studied art, architecture, and design at the École des Beaux-Arts, the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Paris-Malaquais, and the École Boulle.
