I've been collecting Vera Bradley since 2007. Prior to then, I had little knowledge of the brand. Purses weren't my thing. I didn't even use a purse until after I graduated college. My senior year of high school I bought a little black nylon tri-fold wallet with a key ring from American Eagle and used it for four years. It was just large enough to hold my ID's, cash, and my emergency credit card thanks to my parents. I still have that wallet somewhere. We've been through a lot together, classes, old flames, trips to New Orleans and Panama City. Come to think of those trips, I'm lucky to still have that wallet... but I digress.
I moved to Fort Wayne, IN, for my first job after college in 2002. I actually met my husband the first day I moved there, thanks to mutual friends, and Fort Wayne immediately felt like home. I didn't realize that at the time, but now that I have several moves under my belt, it felt most like home. I didn't know then that I shared my new hometown with the Vera Bradley headquarters. I'd watch the news and every spring I'd see crazed women lining up in the wee hours of the morning, rain or shine, anxiously awaiting to see into this mythical sale. The news would report of the crowds and do some interviews with the glassy-eyed women. Coworkers would bring in their new goodies to work and show off what deals they got. I specifically remember a friend getting a Petal Pink Zip ID Case for $2. (What I wouldn't give to have one of those now!)
In 2006, after moving into our first home, my cousin and a friend came up to stay with us to attend the sale. She maxed out her credit card, bringing home bags of goodies. Still, I wasn't interested. It was just nice to have someone from home to visit me. I knew without that sale, she wouldn't have come. I still love her anyways. :)
In 2007 I decided to finally see what the fuss was about. On a Saturday morning I casually drove over to the Coliseum to check out this sale everyone raved about. Oh the bargains! Oh the color! Oh the smell of the roasting nuts! There was a sign hanging overhead stating that purchases were limited to $10,000 a person. “Who would spend that much?” I thought as I started looking around. It didn't take long for me to see how easily it would be.
That year the main patterns were Citrus, Picadilly Plum, Alpine Black, and Chelsea Green. The new microfiber line Vera had introduced didn't appear to do well ( it would later). So there were heaps of microfiber bags on tables, $1 each, $2 each, $5 each, in black, turquoise, lime green, magenta, and burnt orange. I picked up a few of those, I preferred solids until that time.
Then I saw it. Citrus. My first love. I picked up a Little Toggle Tote in that luxuriously decadent pattern and saw the cutest little elephants on the interior fabric. I was HOOKED. The rest of my shopping experience was a blur. Just grab, grab, grab. I ended up with $300 of purses, wallets, and accessories. Back then $300 went farther at the sale than it does nowadays. When I got home, $300 filled up six garbage bags full.
When you go into the sale, they give you these flimsy silky plastic pink bags to use. As many as you want. But you have to carry them, somehow. Then you get to check out, in another room, and they bag everything in white plastic bags. I barely made it back to my car. My hands were red, swollen, and bruised. I did drag some of the bags, and did damage a couple of microfiber bags. :(
Although married for almost 1.5 years by then, my husband had never really seen me bargain shop before. He didn't know my hidden super powers. I definitely heard about it, $300 on a whim! It just happened so fast!
I gave a garbage bag full to each of my sisters and my mom. They, too, were Vera Bradley newbies. Until then, one of my sisters had a Bermuda Blue little crossbody and Zip ID Case. That was the extent between the four of us. That quickly changed.
So let's do the math, six garbage bags, take away three, leaves me with three bags still full. What was I going to do with all of this fabulous Vera Bradley? I was discussing my dilemma with a work colleague, who, unknown to me at the time, was an Ivy League bargain shopper. Literally she went to Cornell. She told me that she buys enough at the sale to resell to pay for the items she wanted to keep. Genius! That's when I discovered the selling side of eBay. Back then, in the glory days, you could like a bag for $0.99 in a seven day auction and you'd triple, quadruple your money. Hubby was happy, I made my money back. I was happy to find a new love and expand on her career choice. I graduated with a degree in retail. This was my jam.
