Mulberry Bags-from bags to riches
We have created this site to present to you a platform where you can browse new and pre-owned Mulberry bags for sale. As these handbags are made from the finest leather then age doesn't detract from their appeal. If anything, Mulberry handbags become better looking with years as the leather starts to age and develop a richer tone to it than a brand new bag.
As a result, there is a buoyant second hand market for these Mulberry bags which you'll discover when you start browsing the store pages on the left hand side of the page. We do want to add one important point-Mulberry bags are heavily copied and the market is awash with counterfeit items. On google you will find many of the results are from websites that sell replica handbags. We urge you to only buy original bags and invite you to read our guide to avoiding buying a fake Mulberry.
When it comes to Mulberry bags women are in one of two camps. Either they're indifferent to the Mulberry phenomenon or they love their handbags with a passion !
The company is now a true mammoth in the fashion industry and particularly in the handbags sector. We look at the story behind their success and how the business continues to outperform market expectations.
In the early 1970's a young English guy called Roger Saul was looking for some direction in his life.
Saul already had an entrepreneurial spirit about him having sold military jackets on a market stall in London at the tender age of 16. He moved on to become a buyer at Guys n Dolls fashion chain where he was responsible for purchasing leather belts for the stores.
With some birthday money he had saved up Roger realised he could make a better job of designing belts than the ones he had comes across in his job and boldly decided to start making leather ware in his parent's garage.
With the help of his mother he started making originally designed leather belts which he then sold onto independent fashion boutiques in London.
It was a real family business with his father also helping out with the financial management and sourcing of materials. He received amazing feedback from the stores and sales soared. His leather belts attracted the attention of Parisian and American fashion buyers
The confidence of this success inspired him to create his first leather bag and this moment was the true genesis of the Mulberry brand.
He decided upon the name after a large Mulberry tree that grew on the land of an old school he once attended and the tree logo was actually designed by his sister.
The brand identity soon followed as Saul struck upon the "Le Style Anglais" a look that played to the rest of the world's perception of England as a place of tradition and class and Mulberry bags reflected this perfectly.
The business was on fire at this point winning awards and acclaim from around the world. Mulberry were strong enough to survive several economic downturns although sadly for Saul the brand survived but he didn't.
In 2000, purely to secure extra funding and stablise the business, Roger Saul agreed a deal with Challice, an investment company headed by Christina Ong, a billionaire from Singapore. However, this partnership proved ill fated for Saul and his family.Having sold just over 40% of the business to Challice there were soon major disagreements over the direction the company should take and the timing of such actions. Things came to a head when Saul demanded that Challice fulfil their obligation to expand into America and Challice countered by explaining they felt the brand had to be developed further before such an expansion should take place.
Saul issued an ultimatum which led to Ong calling an emergency shareholder's meeting to vote for Saul's removal from the company. Although he survived the vote of no confidence his position had become too vulnerable and with block voting he was eventually forced to resign from the company.
It's fair to say that Ong steered the company to even more spectacular growth. As popular as Mulberry bags were at that point they were still perceived as perhaps a little old-fashioned and conservative or "traditional and classic" depending on what side of he fence you are on.
It had been left in the shade by more illustrious luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci but under Ong's stewardship Mulberry firmly have their finger on the pulse of the latest fashion trends and have skilfully blended the classic look that made Mulberry so popular in the beginning with a much more contemporary look.
Add to the mix a large number of high profile, Mulberry toting celebrities and the transformation is complete. Today, a new Mulberry bag will feature on many of the world's fashion pages and be seen in paparazzi shots of the rich and famous.
A brand can't survive from celebrity custom alone and so it is with Mulberry bags as the label is now perceived to be one of the most covetable handbags around at the moment !
There is even a popular forum that is devoted simply to Mulberry bags at Mulberry Purse forum
The company are extremely proud of their heritage and it's a little known fact that the factory that produced the very first Mulberry handbag in 1971 is still used by the company today. In fact, this factory has achieved almost mythical status in the industry being as it's located in a very unassuming part of the Somerset countryside and yet is the heart of one of the biggest global luxury brands !
Within the factory, known as The Rookery, there is a well established apprenticeship scheme where people join the company and are then taught different aspects of the manufacturing process. Then, whichever, part of the process they excel in is where they then specialise.
Mulberry continue to celebrate the soul of English countryside living but marry that ethos to international fashion trends. With the ongoing international roll out of this very British brand then the future of Mulberry looks very bright !