I travel at least 10,000 miles a month for work and it seems I'm always dragging around luggage - from the house to the airport, to the hotel, and back again. My guest room is a veritable graveyard for failed luggage. I currently use Samsonite exclusively and they hold up beautifully. They're also budget conscious in comparison to others. I've found that off brands don't seem to be as hardy, but on the plus side, you won't feel bad when baggage handling drop kicks them into the plane.
My co-worker has an Eddie Bauer set and, while beautiful, the bags don't fare any better than my set which I got for less than half the cost. Here are a few ideas you might want to think about:
1. It is absolutely worth the extra few bucks to get the 360 degree caster wheels (also called "spinners"), especially if you have kids. The traditional inline wheels tilt your suitcase oddly and can cause damage/stress on your wrists & arms. They also don't mose as well as the 360's. I swear by those spinners, they will change the way you think about moving luggage. As it is, you have your hands full in an airport...coordinating travel, shepherding family, etc. This makes transporting luggage so much easier - and if your kids are big enough, makes it easy for them to maneuver and help out as well.
2. I bought my recent Samsonite set at Costco, if you can believe it. It came with 2 sizes of luggage. I paid about $100 for both pieces.
3. Remember that the biggest suitcase (the largest is about 29-30 inches) can cause a weight problem - including the weight of the bag itself. I know we're only talking about 3 inches, but that makes all the difference! First of all, we (me included) tend to fill our suitcases...if you fill up a 29" suitcase, you WILL have over 50 lbs. Trust me. Go with a smaller suitcase which is about 25". I travel a week at a time and I can pack a week worth of business suits, travel outfits, workout clothes, toiletries, and incidentals in a 26" case. My 29" case was ALWAYS close or over 50 lbs. Add to that the fact that a smaller case is much easier to schlepp around. I travel with a 26" bag...unless I'm on a longer vacation. Then it's a 26" bag and my 19" bag. As long as you don't toss everything in the bag willynilly, you will be just fine.
4. Just accept the fact that airline baggage people will NOT treat your bags kindly. It's not out of meanness or ill temper. They move thousands of bags every day...be prepared for scuffs, dings, nicks and the like. I've watched people flip out because their expensive designer bags had a scuff mark on it.
5. Have a TSA approved lock attached to ALL your bags, carry ons included. You can get these locks cheaply anywhere, including
Amazon and Walmart. Decorate your bag with ribbons, baggage strap(s), etc., to differentiate yours from the masses. I mean, most of us have black luggage - including me. Decorations make it easier to identify your items on the baggage carousel, it deters thieves, and if a bad guy does decide to grab your bag, it's easier for you to catch them BEFORE they make off with your stuff.
Hope that helps!
I second this -DH bought me the largest for Christmas one year from Kohl's-
It's always good to hear someone else's point of view!
I get the TSA approved ones so that if TSA needs to rifle through my undies, they can...but some random nutburger will have a harder time of it. 
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