Talking Shop is our series where we talk to interesting people about their most interesting buys.
If you’ve ever left a review about the Béis Weekender somewhere on the internet, Shay Mitchell has probably read it. The good, the bad, the “this is too heavy,” and “the straps hurt my shoulders” — and she welcomes it all. In fact, she wants you to keep bringing it: The founder and her team just used nearly eight years of comments to overhaul its core collection of travel essentials, Weekender included.
“It was time for a refresh,” says Mitchell, who’s also the company’s chief creative officer. “We have that open line of communication with our customers, and their feedback really does have an impact on what we think about putting out in the future. I took it in, and me and the design team got to work.”
Mitchell told me that Béis’ “renovation” was about a two-year process and covers nine products, all of which are now available: the Weekender, Mini Weekender, Travel Backpack, Dopp Kit and Packing Cubes (small to extra large sizes), as well as the Large Check-In, Medium Check-In, Carry-On and Small Carry-On rollers. Ahead of the launch, I talked to Mitchell about what’s new, and about some of the must-have products she packs inside her bags whether she’s going on a roadtrip or taking a 13-hour flight.
Related
Want more from NBC Selected? Sign up for our newsletter, The Selection, and shop smarter.
“I’m super excited about our renovated Weekender — I’m not going to lie though, I love, and will always love, our OG Weekender,” says Mitchell. “However, over the years, seeing how people travel and listening to the feedback, we’ve made a couple of improvements with it.”
That includes taking off a lot of the bag’s hardware, swapping out the leather bottom for a canvas one, adding locking zippers, increasing padding on the shoulder straps and adding an interior divider between the main and shoe compartments, which you can now roll back to create one large packing space. “We’ve also taken out the frame so you truly can pack it to the brim,” says Mitchell. “I pack a lot of things, and I want a big bag — this is for those girls.”
Mitchell heard you loud and clear about the Weekender’s weight, too. The new one is slightly lighter, “but as I’ve said, if you fill a plastic bag with a lot of heavy items, that too is going to be heavy,” she says. “We also have our two sizes. The big size is for my road trips, and that’s the one you put on your roller — trust me, when it’s on wheels, it’s not hurting your shoulder. Then we have our Mini Weekender as well, which is great if you’re not traveling with a roller and you want to be carrying that.”
These antibacterial hand wipes are the first thing that came to mind for Mitchell when I asked her about what she keeps in her Weekender at all times. “I honestly think that’s what — knock on wood — prevents me from getting sick, especially with all the travel that I do,” she says.
“I always have like three cellphone chargers on me,” says Mitchell. She’s a fan of the kind that attaches to the back of her phone so she doesn’t have to worry about cables, like this one from Anker. The pocket-sized MagSafe portable charger is less than half an inch thick, so it doesn’t add much heft to your device, and once you use up all its battery, it only takes about two hours to repower, according to the brand.
You won’t catch Mitchell buying overpriced airport food. “I bring my own snacks,” she says. “It’s kind of like a little pre-ritual that I do. I’ll order something on a delivery service or I’ll go to the store and grab all my favorites.” Chomps jerky sticks are one of her go-tos, in addition to Aloha protein bars and Better Sours gummies.
Living in California, Mitchell is no stranger to the heat, so she came prepared while visiting New York City this summer to host a Béis’ pop-up (it’s going on now through July 18). It was almost 100 degrees Fahrenheit and 100 percent humidity when we talked, and she stayed cool with the Shark ChillPill, which is undoubtedly the portable fan of 2026.
It comes with three interchangeable attachments that activate different modes: fan, mist and cooling plate. You can either hold the fan or twist its base into a stand to prop it up on a flat surface.
“I’ll do anything to stay hydrated,” says Mitchell. Using electrolyte powder is a key part of that for her, so she always throws HydraLyte’s single-serve packets of powder in her bag. It has a lemon flavor with a slight fizz, and it’s low-sugar, according to the brand.
“I always need a cream, and this one is a head to toe,” says Mitchell, who co-founded Rini in November 2025. “It’s great for my hands, too. I just do not like being dry on an airplane.”
While most of Rini’s products, which are made in Korea, are formulated for kids, adults can use them, too. The fragrance-free Daily Barrier Cream hydrates and repairs sensitive skin with ingredients like ceramides, shea butter, vitamin E and Centella asiatica, and it’s accepted by the National Eczema Association.
Related
Why trust NBC Selected?
I’m a reporter at NBC Selected who writes our Talking Shop series, interviewing people like Paris Hilton, Maureen Kelly, Lindsay Hubbard and Chase Crawford. To write this article, I interviewed Shay Mitchell, actress, founder of Béis and co-founder of Rini. We talked about Béis’ new products and her favorite travel essentials.
Catch up on NBC Selected’s in-depth coverage of tech and tools, wellness and more, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok to stay up to date.
