A funny thing happened on the way to our stint on “The Today Show.” In the midst of coordinating things with the show’s producer, our publicists at Dell et Ruhs and my team at Rebagz, both here and abroad, I got all nostalgic.

Why? Because our Messenger Bags were being featured on a “Back-to-School” segment, and it made me remember all the book bags that traveled with me through my school years.

There was the red plastic briefcase that was bigger than I was in third grade that snapped closed. There were the oversized totes I used through high school, and then the backpacks that took me through the winters at Cornell. I used them all until they fell apart because they became the vessels for all I learned as I was growing up.

Galaxy Messenger Bag

That’s why one of the first bags I ever designed was our Messenger Bag. The ones scheduled for “The Today Show” include our Galaxy Messenger Bag, our Honeybee Messenger Bag and our pink Sazi Messenger Bag. When I first sketched its design 3 years or so ago, I thought about all the things I needed when I was in school and where I should put them. So I decided our bag needed pen holders, zippered pockets and, frankly, pockets anywhere I could put them – because there was nothing worse than digging around for a fresh pencil in the middle of a timed exam.

So not only has this “Today Show” segment got me thinking about my school days back in Buffalo, but it also has me remembering the beginnings of my business, how Rebagz was born. I remember setting up our recycling network in the Philippines, where all our bags are made, and making sure Rebagz were (and continue to be) made under fair labor conditions.

In the beginning, I was the crazy American woman who wanted to buy the emptied sacks of rice, not the full ones. That made no sense! But I was willing to buy the used sacks, so they gave them to me. And, honestly, we were lucky if we collected ten at a time. I started to think those rice sellers were right – that I was crazy.

Over time, though, we got to know many rice sellers and grocers and such and, within a few months, we’d put together quite a network. Now we get thousands of sacks at a time to recycle. And they all have those vivid graphics printed on them. Who could throw those beauties out? That’s why they became my fabric.

Honeybee Messenger Bag

I remember looking back over my years of high school when I graduated, marveling at how I’d survived all that drama, all that teasing for being “the brain.” (I was still a teenager, even at the end of it.) I cried as I left college, grateful to have met so many people, thankful for all I’d learned and yet terrified to be “staring into the great abyss of my future,” as I called it then. I was so used to being a good student! The thought of leaving the safety of schoolwork and grades made my insides all a-jumble.

With Rebagz, my fear arrived sooner rather than later because, to be completely honest, I had absolutely no experience in manufacturing or in running a company. I probably had no business starting a business – but I did it anyway. I’ve always been a little headstrong that way. Fortunately, I discovered that all those years spent carrying those books around taught me I can learn how to do just about anything when I have to.

In so many ways, I’m still a student. And I’m grateful to all the people I learn from now, be they friends, colleagues, customers or TV producers. The difference is my books and papers now travel in my Cinchy Tote or my Large Tie Tote. Although, now that I think of it, those pen holders in our Messenger Bags would come in awfully handy. Hmmm…

Sazi Messenger Bag

You gotta love a letter that starts out with “Holy Mackerel!”

Especially when it’s spelled correctly and, given that Rachel Maddow strives to get her facts straight, it only follows that her spelling would be spot-on as well. It’s that focus on the facts that make our whole office such a fan of her show on MSNBC – and because she’s respectful toward everyone she interviews on her show, no matter their political persuasion.

At Rebagz®, we’ve been very fortunate to have had a fair share of celebrity “placements” – including Angelina Jolie, Halle Berry and appearances on “Entourage” and “Ugly Betty.” But I decided I wanted us to look beyond the so-called “tabloid magnets” and recognize people who don’t usually get fun fashion things sent to them.

Because Rachel Maddow’s a real “statement maker,” we just had to send her (and her hard-working staff) a bunch of our eco-friendly bags – our new “Statement Makers” among them. I wrote a letter telling her why we’re such fans of her show:

- Because she states facts, not fiction.

- Because she’s authoritative without being authoritarian – and always with a sense of humor.

- Because she maintains the same respectful demeanor whether she’s interviewing knowledgeable experts or overpaid wags.

- Because she and her staff do exhaustive research, so that it becomes clear how few facts the aforementioned wags have to back up their talking points.

- Because we can watch her for half an hour and feel completely caught up with the world.

- Because she’s the first woman to create a strong and distinctive presence on MSNBC.

And, above all…

- Because she truly represents people like me, the she-geeks of the world.

About ten days later, our (amazing!) operations manager Alexis Lyman called out, “Marty, you have to see this!” I walked into her office and she handed me an envelope and said, “You have to read this out loud.” It hadn’t been opened – the mail had only just arrived – and so I wondered why she wanted it read aloud.

Then I saw the return address was MSNBC, and that “Maddow” was scribbled above it – and here’s what our absolute favorite newscaster wrote to us:

Rachel Maddow's Note

Holy Mackerel!

Best! Rachel


We all squealed. (Seriously – we’re very geeky that way.) We hope she and her staff enjoy their Rebagz as much as we enjoy their show. If you haven’t seen it, tune in to MSNBC! No matter where you fall on the political spectrum, I think you’ll appreciate her civility and intelligence.

XOXO Marty

The Setting
I was at a meeting of small local business owners last Friday morning and the usual suspects were addressed: too many taxes on small businesses, how banks are buying treasury bonds and other banks instead of making the loans they were supposed to make with their bailout money, health care… The same subjects any business owner who survived 2009 would bring up and, understandably, these topics got the lion’s share of attention.

The Issue
I asked whether there’s some way to get a tax break or a special state certification that might help set apart those of us who do business in a socially responsible way – i.e. using eco-friendly and fair labor/fair trade practices. I talked about the difficulties we face competing with products made in China, and how inhumane the conditions are over there. I pointed out that if we help raise wages overseas then, eventually, it will become more competitive to make things here. And that means manufacturing jobs would finally come back to the US.

(That’s the big “DUH!” of this whole situation. Even if someone doesn’t care about the humanitarian situation, there are plenty of mercenary and nationalistic reasons to support it too! Not that I necessarily want to encourage that sort of thing…)

The Myth
As we were on our way back to our cars, a man who’s in charge of a very large Asian loan fund took me aside and told me that I had it all wrong about China. “China’s going to save America,” he said.

Fortunately for him, it was too early on a Friday morning for me to lose my temper. But he did get an earful about the disgusting way they treat their workers, etc. When it became clear there was no convincing me otherwise, he made his way to his car.

”China’s going to save America” – he was absolutely sincere! And completely, thoroughly and horribly misguided.

The Reality
China wants to dominate, well, the entire planet – including the rest of Asia, lest anyone should think I’m xenophobic. (This man’s last name was Honda, which is Japanese.) The Chinese elite don’t seem to care how they do it, who they abuse, who they sell the organs of their executed prisoners to or who they steal corporate and military secrets from.

And what’s so distressing is there are too many non-Chinese who, at best, turn a blind eye or, worse, don’t see anything wrong with any of that. Between what that man said and the comments I’ve been hearing from American manufacturers, I’m thinking all these people have OD’ed on greed-laced Kool-Aid.

I Need a Scotch
I look forward to stepping off my soapbox with my next blogpost…and telling you all about the “shockingly awesome” note we got from MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow.

XOXO Marty

I know I’ve been outrageously bad about blogging. I promise to do better! There’s just been so much happening that required my attention. But I saw this article and had to share it.

Apple, Child Labor & Other Forms of “Non-Compliance”

It seems Apple has revealed that child labor was used in some of its factories, and there were other forms of “non-compliance.” (Click here if you’d like to read the article.) You’ll see that, in some cases, workers were beaten for their own “non-compliance.”

Because I go out of my way to make sure our Rebagz are made under fair labor conditions – meaning good wages and a good, safe place to work – in the Philippines, this is reaaaallly a sore point for me, especially since people occasionally question our prices. I simply say, “Our bags aren’t made in China.”

Yes, it’s to Apple’s credit that they revealed this themselves rather than having someone else reveal it for them. And I do think they try to hold themselves to (somewhat) higher standards than their competitors. It’s just that I’ve become increasingly disturbed by how complacent most manufacturers are about the fair labor issue. They’re completely comfortable with the fact that people – sometimes children – work in hideous conditions and make terrible wages. They’ll literally say to me, “It’s just too expensive,” in very calm tones when I confront them about it.

Matter-of-Fact Mistreatment

It’s that calm, matter-of-fact tenor to their words that twists my stomach inside out. Of course it’s alright to treat people horribly, so long as we can sell our product. I’ve even read articles about how much better it is for the Chinese workers because they’re not stuck on the farm anymore, the women particularly.

Instead, they get to live in dormitories, and earn minimal wages that they then have to spend at the company’s store. They work weeks without a day off and, obviously, they’re not 8-hour days. They don’t get vacations. Sometimes they get beaten. Or sexually abused. But mostly they just work…and work…and work…so the factory owner and the importers can get better profit margins.

And yet, the other companies (and the Chinese) insist their workers are so much better off – to which I say, in a similarly matter-of-fact voice, that the house slaves had it better than the field slaves. But they were still slaves.

That’s usually about the time when the conversation ends.

Start Building Your Mountain

Please please please be aware of what you’re buying. Remember your dollars impact the world at large. If you purchase something made under fair labor conditions that may cost a little more than that bag made in China, you do two things. First, in all likelihood, you’ll get much better quality. Second, you literally change the world. Just a little – but little bits add up to mountains.

XOXO Marty

If you’re an “Entourage” fan, you may have seen our gleaming Silver Small Tie Tote on the show’s “Murphy’s Lie” episode.  (It first aired August 16, 2009 and re-airs intermittently on HBO.)   We found this out via a great website called The Purse Forum – a place we’re now huge fans of.

Alexis Dziena, the sleek young actress who plays Ashley on the hit show, was the one who wore it.  The show’s a great fit for us because the star of “Entourage” Adrian Grenier is very dedicated to the environment and has his own show called “Alter Eco” on the Planet Green channel.

How did we get this coup? Well, let’s just say we’re very thankful to Lisa Greenfield, who’s a dear friend and a big supporter of our Rebagz. And thanks also go to the “Celebrity Bags and Style” section on The Purse Forum, a part of The Purse Blog, where you can go to get the expert lowdown on designer bags.

Alexis Dziena & our Silver Tie Tote on "Entourage"

We also loved our previous Rebagz “appearance” on TV when our Multi-Color Large Tie Tote was featured on several episodes spanning three seasons of “Ugly Betty.”  The show’s star America Ferrera had received the bag at an Emmy Awards party in September 2007, just a few months after we launched the line.  That January, we started getting calls from our customers telling us they’d seen the bag on “Ugly Betty.”  Sure enough, we discovered America had decided to wear it on the show – and we were (and still are) so grateful!

America Ferrera & our Large Tie Tote on "Ugly Betty"

Things like these TV appearances have really helped put us on the map.  Granted, our company’s based in Los Angeles, so we’re kind of over the whole celebrity thing.  But when Adrian Grenier and America Ferrera are involved, given the stands they take in their public life, we feel extremely fortunate to be affiliated with them.

XOXO Marty

Senator Carol Liu’s Women’s Health Conference last Friday was amazing!  There were engaging speakers, informative workshops and a lot of great people to meet.  Among them were my friends Tasha Oldham, my fabulous attorney Dava Casoni and Rose Cole, who gave a standing-room only lecture about her extraordinary nutrition program.  (Senator Liu, by the way, was the one who gave me the California Small Business of the Year Award back in May.)

Everyone who attended wound up carrying one of the “White Rose” Cinchy Totes we made especially for the event.  Given that the symbol for the women’s health conference was a rose in full bloom, it seemed only appropriate – and, of course, it suited my friend Rose perfectly.

Packing all the goodies into our Cinchy Totes

And here are those beautiful bags lined up the day before the event, just waiting for the attendees.

Our "White Rose" Cinchy Totes, all lined up

We also set up a booth there and our wonderful office manager Alexis and I had a great time selling our beautiful Rebagz to the people there.  Our new Statement Makers were particularly popular, and one of our customers had a particularly touching story.

Carole Young - a true survivor

This is Carole Young.  She wound up buying one of our “Nipple” Tattletale Totes – and the reason she wanted that bag is because she’s a 19-year survivor of breast survivor.  All our “Nipple” Statement Makers Bags support the Breast Cancer Emergency Fund. (I’ll talk more about them in an upcoming blog – promise!)  Like so many other cancer survivors I’ve met, Carole had a delightful sense of humor and you’d never know from how healthy she looked that she has had to battle this horrible disease.  It was an honor to meet her.

When the annoyances of running a business start to get to me, I remember people like Carole and all that they’ve been through.  It reminds me to be so grateful that I even have a business to run, and that I also have my health, a roof over my head and people in my life that I love so very much.

XOXO Marty

It was over 14 years ago that thousands of men and boys were slaughtered at a place called Srebenica and buried using bulldozers after the women and girls of the town had been bussed out by General Mladic’s army.  His first name, appropriately enough, is Ratko, and he still roams free somewhere in Serbia.  His boss at the time, however, is finally going on trial in the Hague.  That vile member of our species is named Radovan Karadzic and, in addition to the genocide at Srebenica he’s also charged with directing the siege of Sarajevo, which killed 12,000.

The memories of the war in Bosnia have grayed over time, especially because the images from our current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are so vivid and raw.  But it’s important to remember it, and to remember how leaders held the conflict at arm’s distance because it wasn’t convenient to intervene.  The first Persian Gulf war had put everyone off – and then there was the “Black Hawk Down” debacle in Somalia.  There were no oil fields in Bosnia and, though the majority there are white, the people being attacked by the Christian Serbs were Muslim in faith.  Most inconvenient.

It’s taken 14 years to get to this trial.  Slobodan Mlosevic was brought to trial too, a few years ago, but accidentally overdosed on the medication he was taking to feign illness so he could delay his trial.  Like Pinochet before him, Mlosevic demanded sympathy for himself and yet none for his victims.

I know that these are not insane people.  (I refuse to call them “men” because I adore true men too much.)  Yet I cannot fathom the amount of hatred, disdain, selfishness, brutality and all other things evil they summon up to blot out the feelings – the very existence – of those they call “others.”

What does this have to do with eco-friendly handbags?  Not much that’s obvious.  But humans are a part of nature and deserve protecting too – and I also did humanitarian work in Chiapas, Mexico in the aftermath of the Zapatista rebellion.  I was there about the same time Karadzic and Mladic were perpetrating their cruelties on innocents.  I had my moments of danger in Chiapas, but they were nothing, absolutely nothing, compared to what they suffered in Srebenica and Sarajevo.

Was it 1984 when the Winter Olympics were held in Sarajevo?  That was only 11 years before the Srebenica massacre – and, mind you, that was not the only one.  Those Games were just 7 years before Mlosevic first went after the non-Serbs in then-Yugoslavia.  The world celebrates and parties in your city one year, then ignores the lakes of blood there a short while later.

I’m struggling not to be cynical about this because that doesn’t suit my personality.  I suppose I should dwell on the fact that the perpetrators have been pulled into court.  I just know there are tens of thousands who wish someone had cared enough to intervene.

XOXO Marty

In Part 1, I talked about wishing for and designing a new line of bags for our Rebagz Eco-Chic Handbag line. I’d just ordered samples of the bags – and was keeping my fingers, toes and everything else crossed…

Ah, samples. When new samples arrive, it’s occasionally a champagne moment, but more often than not I’ve had to reach for the Pepto Bismol. So when I got the first box of samples delivered to me when I was in New York for the Gift Fair, I hesitated before I opened it. I was so nervous! I took a deep breath and told myself that we could always do revisions, that there had to be a way to make these new bags work. I then took my little cuticle scissors – the only sharp thing I had – and cut the tape on the box.

"Polar Bear Love"
Off-the-Cuff Wristlet

I’m sure I must have scared the people in the next room because I shrieked that loud. They were that beautiful! And I was that relieved. We showed them to some of our customers at the Gift Fair and they loved them as much as we did. (Have a look here.)

I had big plans for the designs I’d developed for these bags, and now that I knew the line would work, I needed to start setting things in motion. That means coming up with a name for the line and aligning ourselves with organizations that I hoped would agree to let us donate proceeds from sales to them.

The name “Statement Makers” was the result of a very fun and illuminating strategy session with my dear friend and long-time publicist Lisa Elia.  We were brainstorming and “Statement Makers” just popped out of her mouth. Why was that the perfect name? Because from a distance, these bags are a style statement. But up close, they’re a personal statement – about peace, about environmentalism, or about being a she-geek. (Being smart is sexy again – ‘bout time!)

"Cubic"
Shoulder-to-Shoulder Bag

A big part of the Statement Makers vision is that they’re a way to show your point of view in a fun and amiable way. I don’t know about you, but all of us here at Half the Sky and Rebagz feel that all the nasty, noisy nonsense that dominates public dialogue right now is depleting, pointless and destructive. We strongly feel that one should have opinions, but have you noticed that a lot of the noisemakers don’t actually take a stand? Instead, they just tear down any idea they don’t like without offering any kind of sound, alternative solution to the problems facing us.

So that’s why we’ve aligned ourselves with the organizations that we have, and we’re proud and thrilled that they’ve accepted our invitation. Just so you know, I’m extremely picky about what non-profits we’ll work with, both here and abroad (where they’re called NGO’s – non-governmental organizations). Having done humanitarian work in Chiapas, Mexico and worked with organizations here as well, I’ve discovered there are a few very good groups and a lot of others that range from mediocre to downright awful.

The groups we chose to approach are ones that I know to have a strong track record for effectiveness in their arena. They’re part of the solution, and I can’t fully express how much I admire the work they do. I’ll be blogging about each one separately in the coming week or so, and I’ll highlight each of the new bag designs too.

So we proudly announce the launch of Statement Makers. It’s time to start the conversation…with style.

XOXO Marty

You’ve heard me mention our new Statement Maker line about a zillion times – and now they’re finally here!

"Panda Love"
Shoulder-to-Shoulder Bag

Where did our Statement Makers come from?  About a year and a half ago, I started thinking that at some point I’d want to create a third branch of our Rebagz Eco-Chic Handbag line.  I wanted something I could really make my own in terms of the graphic design.  Don’t get me wrong – I love love love our recycled rice sack line and our colorful bags made from recycled juice packs.  But there were two issues I had.  First, when you’re making anything out of recycled materials, you sometimes have to wait for things to come through the recycling system – which means that production gets delayed, and your customers are stuck tapping their foot, waiting for their handbags.  And I like keeping our customers happy.

Second, from an artistic standpoint, I’d so far only been able to work with the colors of the juice packs or the graphics that were already printed on the rice sacks.  As much as I love the bags we have, my designer’s ego was getting the better of me.  I wanted to put my own visual stamp on my bags, damn it!

I thought of doing something along the lines of an organic cloth bag, made from cotton, bamboo or something like that.  I even considered silk.  But I wasn’t finding anything that I could really wrap my heart and eye around, plus there were other bags out there – beautiful ones – already made from these materials.
So what to do, what to do…

Well, it’s funny how things work.  At the beginning of the summer, our Philippine broker Malu mentioned that she’d found an organization that was making hand woven bags from a recycled material that could be printed on, and that had straps made from recycled plastic.  (I don’t like plastic, but it’s out there, so it needs a second life.)  This meant that we didn’t have to worry about production, seeing as this organization had located an abundance of these two materials to recycle.

It was a real “Eureka” moment for me.  (That term comes from the ancient scientist Archimedes, who ran naked through the streets of Syracusa one night…On second thought, I think I’ll just stick to handbags.)  It’s so wonderful to put a wish out there and then have what you’re seeking find its way to you.  I immediately set to work coming up with new designs and artwork, and then had samples made.

Up close & personal with our "Panda Love" design

(You can’t really see it in the photo, but it says “SAVE” in the black part of our “Panda Love” design.)

How did those samples turn out?  Stay tuned for Part 2.


XOXO Marty

In case you’re looking for Part 1 and Part 2, just follow the links. With our new “Statement Makers” line about to debut, I thought it was a good time to do some reflecting – and also to create a place online where I can send people who ask, “How’d you get all this started?” (If you’d like a sneak peek of our Statement Makers, check out the new slide show on our Rebagz homepage.

Part 3 – Day-to-Day Life @ Rebagz
When the work day ends in Los Angeles, where our offices are, the work day is just beginning in the Philippines, so it’s not unusual for me to be up past midnight doing business by phone and email. But I consider myself incredibly fortunate to be working this hard because I know there are so many people who would love to be in my position.

I love talking to our customers. It’s actually one of my favorite things – seriously! Sometimes that’s the only social time I have all day. I encourage them, and our sales agents on the road, to give us feedback. We want to know the bad as well as the good so we can make our designs and the way we do business as user-friendly as possible. And if you’re one of our customers already, you’ve probably noticed how fantastic Rorey and Shasta are. I’m so lucky to have them working with me.

Our customers are the reason we’re as successful as we are, and one of the things that’s so vital to me is to celebrate every small inch of success and express my gratitude wherever and to whomever I can. We’ve had a lot of extraordinary opportunities that have seemingly fallen into our laps and I’m so grateful for each and every one of them.

For anyone thinking about getting into this sort of business, I highly encourage it! It’s incredibly rewarding. But in terms of creating one’s own design business, just realize fear is a part of it. Most people let the fear stop them, but there’s no true courage without fear, and you need a lot of guts to stick your neck out in fashion. When you have those dark, frustrating days, and I’ve had scores of them, just remember that if it was easy, everybody would be doing it – and succeeding at it. The only thing that can keep you down is if you choose not to get up again.

I think 3 parts is enough for my retrospective on Rebagz. Any more navel-gazing on my part and I’m afraid I’ll get a crick in my neck.

Thank YOU so much for all your support!

XOXO Marty