Louis Vuitton
Trunk maker in Paris; the Damier check came in 1888 and the Monogram canvas in 1896, to make copying harder.
Louis Vuitton learned his craft as a packer and trunk-maker in Paris and opened his own workshop in 1854. His flat trunk covered in canvas was light and could be stacked, unlike rounded trunks, and it was quickly copied.
His son Georges Vuitton developed the Damier and, in 1896, the Monogram canvas with flowers and initials to guard against copies. The Keepall and Speedy bags of 1930 made the brand known for travel by train and air. Louis Vuitton is part of LVMH.
Date codes of letters and numbers in bags from the 1980s; older trunks have numbered locks and labels.