Coach Purses

Before the famous Coach purses became self-sufficient icons, Coach started out as a small wholesale handbag manufacturing company in New York City, in the early 1940's.

By 1960, the owners Miles and Lillian Cahn decided to open a retail collection and asked designer Bonnie Cashin (pictured below) to head the project.

Due to other obligations, Bonnie could not clear her schedule for 2 more years.

But the Cahn's patiently waited for their #1 choice to agree to their offer and two years later in 1962, she finally did.

Among other achievements, Bonnie Cashin is best known for taking the fashion world by storm with her designs of Coach Handbags and thus revolutionizing the handbag industry.

After an era of dark, dull accessories in the fashion world, she began introducing bright colors that matched her fashion views of the time.

Everyone from client to factory worker was amazed at the highly functional character and style of her Coach handbags.

She also insisted on using only the best materials in the construction of these Coach handbags which added to the high quality of the Coach brand.

Her associate, Dorothy Liebes, a highly successful textile designer, contributed to this success as well.

And working together as a dynamic duo, they were able to create stunning designs and unmatched success.

Bonnie Cashin was definitely considered a trend setter by creating a line of matching smaller items that neatly fit inside any Coach purse.

These items included special, smaller purses made specifically for sunglasses, change, keys or make-up.

In addition, she started using hardware for clothes – especially brass – which was a new trend at the time.

Finally, she pioneered a new way of quickly and efficiently opening and closing the bag.

Famous for thinking outside the box, she found her inspiration in the way she easily battened down the top of her convertible sports car.

Need to Clean your Coach?? Cleaning your bag incorrectly may ruin it! Learn how to do it the right way. Check out these easy instructions on cleaning any type of Coach bag.

The policy of the firm was to invest in high-quality, but not astronomically expensive products, produced mainly through outsourcing, and in large numbers.

This policy is much different from their competitors who focus on a limited edition policy of their handbags.

In recent years, they have gone international, and the standards for Coach handbags are higher than ever.

In keeping with their superior quality standards, Coach is well-known for their repair policy.

For a small fee, any Coach purse can be delivered back to the company for repair.

In addition, Coach also provides professional cleaning products for all their Coach purses which can be purchased on their website.

I've put together a list of what to look for to determine whether your Coach bag is authentic or fake.

Take a look at How to Spot a Fake Coach Handbag.