Bringing Home The Birkin

Synopsis

If you want an Herm's Birkin bag, be prepared to wait. And wait. And wait. After more than twenty years, the iconic Birkin remains the ultimate status symbol and probably the most coveted accessory of all time. The supposed 'wait list' is two years long, and when Herm's calls, they may not even offer you the Birkin you want. But this is not a buyers' market, and if you're like many women, you would jump hurdles in your high heels for the chance to own this ultimate symbol of luxury and style. Bringing Home the Birkin is the riveting story of how one man exposed the underbelly of the lucrative handbag industry.Michael Tonello's newfound career started with an impulsive move to Barcelona, the vanishing of a job assignment, no work visa, and a Herm's scarf sold on eBay to generate some quick cash. When, by happenstance, he stumbled onto the truth and walked out of Herm's stores around the world having bought millions...and millions...of dollars in Birkins, he became one of eBay's most successful entrepreneurs, and a Robin Hood (of sorts) to thousands of desperate rich women.Over the next five years, Michael's bag-buying forays took him around the globe, into the lives of celebrities and poseurs, even into danger: hiring thugs to rescue a bag held for ransom and eluding Herm's watchful eye. Although every bag Michael sold was genuine and every transaction legal, the company went to great lengths to keep Michael from buying bags, in an attempt to maintain the bag and brand exclusivity. Despite all his risky and enterprising globetrotting, Tonello found true love in the unlikeliest place when he least expected it. A thrilling expose and touching love story, Tonello's whirlwind memoir will surprise you, entrance you, and finally remind you that serendipity and true love have no waiting lists.