Cincha Canvas Go-Tote review

REVIEW – I have a confession, I am an unofficial bag lady.  Why own just one bag and try to mold it to every situation, when you can own a bag specifically designed to meet that need? As a REALTOR, I am constantly on the hunt for the perfect business bag to carry my laptop and files for my daily work. I have my current bag that I absolutely love, but it is no longer available for purchase and unfortunately needs to be replaced.  I’ve been searching for its successor, and I was happy to jump on the opportunity to put the Cincha Canvas Go-Tote to the test to see if it might finally be the replacement I’ve been looking for.

⬇︎ Jump to summary (pros/cons)
Price: $119.99
Where to buy: Cincha,

What is it?

Named one of Oprah’s Favorite Things, the Cincha Canvas Go-Tote is a water-resistant canvas tote bag with vegan leather accents.  The Canvas Go-Tote is equipped with a zippered closure, an integrated laptop sleeve and double handle design which allows for carrying with handles or using the hidden shoulder straps.

What’s included?

• Canvas Go-Tote
• Cincha dust bag

Specs

• Dimension: 23.75″ L x 14.5″ H x 7.5″ D
• Weight: 3 lbs
• Water resistant cotton canvas
• Zippered top-closure
• Two water-bottle holders
• Laptop sleeve – holds up to a 13″
• One external and three internal pockets
• Vegan leather accents
• Both handles and shoulder straps
• Hidden side slots for use with your travel belt to attach to luggage

Design and features

The most important thing about a good bag or tote is its features, and the Cincha Canvas Go-Tote delivers several thoughtful ones. It includes a zippered top closure, a cushioned laptop sleeve that fits up to a 13″ device, two water bottle sleeves, one external pocket, and three internal pockets (two open and one zippered). The tote also features sturdy leather handles, hidden shoulder straps, and discreet side slots designed to work with a travel belt.

The Canvas Go-Tote is quite spacious.  I can easily fit my laptop, portfolio, travel toiletry bag, water bottle and canned drink with no issues.  There are numerous pocket options that help keep you organized and allow this tote to accommodate many uses from business bag to travel bag and I think it would even make a nice diaper bag.

Your Cincha Canvas Go-Tote can be worn several ways.  You can carry it as a handbag using the coordinating vegan leather handles or tucked away in the zipper compartments you can use the longer shoulder straps to carry it in that manner.  Personally, I find the shoulder straps a little too short for my preference and would love to see them as an adjustable option where I could wear them longer.  An adjustable option could even allow for crossbody wear, which would be a great addition for some users, myself included.

 

The top of the Canvas Go-Tote does not zip completely.  This could be beneficial if you were using it as a diaper bag to easily grab bottle or essentials with out unzipping the whole bag.  For me as a business bag, with business cards, pens and smaller items- this did become an issue when the bag spilled over a few times.

 

The two leather strips on the side of the bag contain small slots to insert a travel belt to attach your tote to your luggage.

Inside you will find your two water bottle pockets, one on each side. A zippered pocket with vegan leather accent fills the third side of your Cincha Tote and the last side holds your cushioned laptop sleeve and two additional pockets for storage.

The Cincha Canvas Go-Tote is available in 6 color options on their website including Cream, Jet, Olive, Navy Stripe, Cabana,  and Cove.  The main body is a cotton canvas and the straps are vegan leather with some other leather accents around the zippers and hidden side slots.  For my review, I received the color, Olive.

Cincha overs a few other versions from the Go-Tote collection including the Mini Canvas Go-Tote and the Vegan Leather Go-Tote.

For a slightly more investment ($129.99), you can upgrade your water resistant cotton canvas with vegan leather accent tote to an all around water resistant pebbled vegan leather tote.  All other features remain the same.  The Vegan Leather Go-Tote option is available in navy and port (red) colors.  I feel for me, the Vegan Leather is more my style and preference over the Canvas option both in looks and in usability.  While I love the color choices on the canvas option, it does attract dust and hair and as hard as I try there is always dog “glitter” hair on everything we own.

If the dimensions of the Cincha Canvas Go-Tote seem a little larger than your preference, Cincha does offer a mini version.  The Cincha Mini Canvas Go-Tote ($99.99) is very similar to the full size version.  The Mini, available in 4 of the 6 colors as the full version, is also made of water resistant cotton canvas, has a zippered top-closure, pockets (three external and two internal), just only one water botte holder over two.  Also, Cincha does not mention this Mini Canvas Go-Tote including the cushioned laptop pocket and the size seems to be too small to accommodate one, so this would be another difference between the mini and full size option.  However, what it is lacking you do gain one big bonus of being able to wear it one additional way.  It comes with an adjustable strap that allows you to wear it as a messenger bag crossbody.  I think this is a major miss not having this strap as something included with the full size Canvas Go-Tote.

Comparisons are as follows.

Feature	Canvas Go-Tote	Mini Canvas Go-Tote
Length (L)	23.75″	14″
Height (H)	14.5″	9″
Width (W)	7.5″	7″
Weight	3 lbs	1 lb
Color Choices	Cream, Jet, Olive, Navy Stripe, Cabana,  or Cove	Cream, Jet, Olive, or Navy Stripe

To keep your bag looking its best, Cincha recommends using a mild laundry detergent or soap mixed with warm water. Using a soft cloth, gently wipe the material in circular motions to lift away stains, then rinse the area with a soap-free damp washcloth, being careful to avoid contact with the leather areas. When not in use, you can maintain the bag’s original shape by stuffing it lightly and storing it upright inside its dust bag.

Philanthropy is a core value of mine and I love when companies build giving back into their business model.  So, I was thrilled to see that as of March 2021, Cincha has started donating 100 airline miles for each of their travel bet purchased to be used to reconnect separated migrant families.  According to their site, this initiative has already led to the donation of over 1 million miles.  I would love to see this incentive scaled to giving back for any of their products being purchased and not just the travel belt, but I do appreciate they are giving and starting somewhere.

Cincha offers a 30 day happiness guarantee.  If you don’t love your order, reach out to [email protected] with your order number and item(s) you wish to return. While the original shipping charge is non-refundable, the only other fee you will endure to return is $5 fee for them to provide a return label or you may purchase your own.  If you use their label, they will deduct the fee from your final refund.  Note: exchanges are free of charge.

Final thoughts

While I think the Cincha Canvas Go-Tote is a fantastic bag, I’m not sure for me it is the everyday bag I’m looking for in replacing my current business bag.  There are so many wonderful features I appreciate from the built in water bottle holders, laptop sleeve and numerous pockets.  Also that it is so easy to clean is a huge bonus, as I am known to spill a coffee or two.  However ultimately, I need the shoulder straps to be longer and adjustable and the top not fully zipping closed is something that has become not ideal for the way I throw my bag around.  The Vegan Leather Go-Tote would also be more ideal, as the canvas paired with my house of shedding dog leads to having to lint roll the bag daily.

What I like about Cincha Canvas Go-Tote

• Color combo options
• Water-resistant
• 30 day happiness guarantee
• Cincha gives back

What needs to be improved?

• Shoulder straps longer and adjustable
• Top not fully zipping closed
• Canvas material attracting lint/ hair

Price: $119.99
Where to buy: Cincha, Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Cincha. Cincha did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.