Had family come in from the Philippines as they were visiting the US, they stayed a week here, to experience Chicagoland. We brought two vehicles to pick them up at Terminal 5 (International). There were 4 of them and they each had two check-ins and a carry-on. So, easy math = 12 pieces of luggage in total. I immediately took notice of their Rimowas - aluminum and polycarbonate (different colors and see through). They made many claims of the quality of the product, its durability, stylishness and excellent customer service for repairs - and this was offered worldwide. I say all that to say, we stumbled on this Rimowa location on Calle de Serrano while walking toward Parque del Retiro. We were welcomed in by security and Andres was really attentive in answering our questions. Note: There's also a Global Blue program here where you can get your taxes back at the airport. So make sure to complete the paperwork and arrive at the airport early to claim your tax money. That's savings right there - ka ching!! By the way, the aluminum models are killer but are really heavy so we opted for the much lighter, polycarbonate models because they can be strict flying to Europe and especially if you're flying to the Philippines. The colors are also seasonal so if you are wanting a particular color, you may have to wait a year or two. Anyway, by picking up a piece, you get a personalized name tag with your initials. Duly note this - the luggage are no longer made in Germany but rather, Canada and Czechoslovakia. But nonetheless, the German engineering is very evident. They offer free delivery to your hotel room if you need it. They'll also hold your purchases if you want to spend the rest of your day checking out Salamanca. Muchas gracias Rimowa!! read more

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Great experience purchasing my first set of Rimowas. I had done an insane amount of research prior to going to the store so I pretty much knew what I wanted, but they were still friendly and helpful and showed me a few different options to consider. I ended up getting the Classic Aluminum Cabin and the Essential Papaya Check-In Medium. I was a bit on the fence about whether or not to get a check-in since it's a lot to pay for "plastic" luggage but an Aluminum would get crazy banged up being constantly checked in, but pulled the trigger when they let me reserve the Papaya color pre-release. It was releasing the day I flew out of Madrid, so they let me pre-pay and pick it up on my way to the airport. They processed all of the paperwork for the VAT refund and made my custom name tags and attached them to the luggage for me. Your tag can have anywhere from 3-4 letters. Since I don't have a middle name they said they could either leave a space or put a "." so I opted for the dot, which if I could do again I might opt for the space or two "."'s since the "." is not centered and looks a bit odd as just one. Oh well. When I showed up to pick up my luggage a few days later they were not quite open yet but let me in and gave me my luggage. Ask for paper shopping bags if you want them! read more