Consider the sales of a large brand like Mulberry, who reportedly took a commanding increase in its sales over the holiday season into January. According to an article from Yorkshire Post, the fashion designer showed up in the face of bad business climate:

“The group, which designs, makes and sells leather goods and accessories, enjoyed a 41 per cent sales boom in the six weeks to January 14 as the upper end of the fashion market proved resilient to the economic gloom. The Somerset-based company is likely to have benefited from strong demand from its stores in Asia and from affluent Asian tourists visiting stores in the West.”

What makes this story important for store owners who carry wholesale fashion goods is the primary item that brought consumers to stores – handbags. The article says even though slow sales had been reported in various areas, the overall growth shows that a large western style handbag selection is crucial to the success of fashion store owners.

As you prepare your store for the upcoming spring season, make sure you have a wide variety and selection of wholesale handbags for your customers. Don’t just carry a few western handbags – instead carry western handbags, children’s western handbags, hair on hide handbags and other choices for your discerning customers. This will only help with your sales in the New Year!

This is an especially difficult area of choice for women looking to convey power, according to the article. One woman who seemed to have it all figured out was Margaret Thatcher, the former prime minister of Great Britain:

“The issue of Margaret Thatcher’s handbag came up. According to press reports, the handbag was a power symbol. This mainly because it had carried many important State documents such that it became synonymous with the power held by the owner. This led to the coining of the word ‘handbagging’ referring to Margaret Thatcher’s abrasive style while dealing with those who annoyed her. It is said that the handbag wielded so much power that at one time when she left the handbag on the table briefly during a meeting she was chairing one of those present quipped the meeting could continue since ‘the handbag is here’.”

If you are looking to convey power with your choice of handbag like Thatcher did, this column describes the ways in which your specific bag can influence a situation like Thatcher’s did. It is important to understand a handbag’s place, the article says, especially in social and economic situations. In social situations, the handbag is an area of discussion between women while remaining secure. At the same time, the handbag represents financial prowess in economical terms, seeing as the money inside can be both paper and plastic.

Finally, as the management within companies begins to shift towards more female administration, handbags will become a force to be reckoned with in every situation.  Choose wisely.

Since the environment is a hot button issue, solar energy is becoming a more prominent cause for concern for many people. Now the solar movement has found its way into the fashion world and handbags are being outfitted with the newest technology. According to News Tonight, your handbag will soon be able to produce energy for your mobile devices:

“The bag has been designed by the Alexandra institute in collaboration with Swiss embroidery specialist Forster Rohner. The hand bag is known as ‘solar handbag’ and is the brainchild of a Danish design company, called DIFFUS. The hand bag will run upon solar energy. The designer of the bag told that the surface of the bag is embroidered with an integrated combination of normal embroidery and conductive embroidery that will enable to transfer the energy yielded from the solar cells to the rechargeable battery. It has been told that the bag is capable of generating 2 Watts of usable energy which is stored on a lithium-ion battery, woven into the fabric.”

With the number of mobile devices that we currently carry using their energy as rapidly as new technology requires, this new type of handbag may be the next big thing to hit the runway. It could theoretically charge any mobile devices and has a feature that is perfect for those who love to overstuff their handbags:

“…during night or in dark surroundings, opening the bag activates optical fibers attached to the inside of the bag that give a diffuse glow and assist in the search for keys, purse or other objects of vital importance.”

“Studies show half of women suffer pain from carrying heavy handbags — and now men are also suffering, according to new research by the British Chiropractic Association. ‘Heavy man-bags — weighing, on average, 6.2 kg — put unbalanced strain and stress on the body, which can lead to pain, poor posture and health problems,’ says Rishi Loatey, of the British Chiropractic Association. ‘I’ve noticed a spike in patients experiencing pain in the neck and upper back due to carrying around heavy loads more frequently,’ he adds.”

The article mentions a number of ways that you can carry your handbags without adding extra stress or physical wear to your body:

• The bag should be as close as possible to the center of your weight – somewhere around the pelvic area.
• Buy a satchel type bag with a carrying strap that crosses your body diagonally, so that the weight is balanced and not putting more weight on any particular portion of your body.
• If you carry a bag in the crook of your arm, it really doesn’t do your body any better than if you carry it on your shoulder.
• Keep your bag as light as possible. This is one of the best things you can do to keep from experiencing health problems like arthritis due to handbag or backpack carrying.

When choosing a handbag, make sure it is fashionable and can carry only the essential items that you need. Overloading your western style handbag may cause you to have some health concerns.

For instance, Easy A and Superbad starlet Emma Stone was seen at the show wearing a gorgeous tiny black dress made out of some kind of shiny plastic-y material like pleather. Thankfully this looks so much better than it can be described. Seriously look to the right at her picture! It looks good. More interesting is Emma’s fancy, fancy Bottega Veneta Half Knot Calf Clutch, which Miss Stone had in a surprising purple. It’s this kind of western handbag chic that makes young Hollywood look better than old Hollywood all of the time. Emma definitely nailed it at the VMAs for sure.

In the “Why is she still getting into events at all?” category, we have Full House star Candace Cameron using her new role on ABC Family’s Make It or Break It to get into an OK! Magazine event sponsored by vodka. Not very family friendly, but we can let it slide. The former child star was seen at the event with a Prada Antik gathered clutch in a pastel pinkish red hue. This is high fashion for someone who hasn’t really been on the scene in a while, so cheers to you D.J. Tanner for looking good and picking awesome clutches!

For instance, young starlet Dakota Fanning (the Twilight trilogy) has been spotted just about everywhere with an Alexander Wang Studded Duffle, which furthers Fanning’s budding fashion icon status into trendsetter territory. In a slight faux pas at an airport (probably LAX), she pairs the brownish bag with a pink and white ensemble that doesn’t quite gel, but matches with her shoes. It’s a strange choice for Fanning, but I guess it kind of works…maybe.

Back to the studs! Former TV stalwart Rachel Bilson (The O.C.) has been seen all around town with a 3.1 Phillip Lim Edie Leather Handbag and also a few other designer bags featuring, what else, studs! I’m not sure where Bilson gets her fashion sense from, but she usually looks good, so maybe studs have something to do with it. Bilson seems to really love the whole studded craze, seeing as she’s rarely seen without some kind of metal embellishment on her accessories or handbags. Let’s see what she steps out with next – maybe a studded cardigan?

Finally, never one to be left out of the tabloids, Jennifer Love Hewitt (Ghost Whisperer) was out the other day with a Novella Royale Mister Studded Purse, which has been seen on Taylor Momsen and Kristin Cavalleri, according to this article. Maybe this is a sign that the stud craze is going to be over soon – three D-listers with the same studded bag. That’s never a good sign.

Look what you’ve done Gaga. Stop with the studs so I can write about something else.

When you think of TV talk show host and overall nice person Kelly Ripa, the last celebrity you may associate with her would be Lady Gaga. Of course, I’m sure that Lady Gaga has been on Live with Regis and Kelly, but I wouldn’t expect these two to have much in common. Apparently though, Kelly and Gaga have the same fashion sense…kind of.

Just a few days ago, Kelly was spotted with a Hermes’ Birkin bag while out with her husband. This is the same bag that we previously spotted Lady Gaga out with, but with her custom addition: tons of little metal studs. Normally this would be considered a faux pas, but it seems like Lady Gaga can get away with anything she wants.

At the steep price of more than $10,000, I definitely wouldn’t be putting a hundred studs through my purse, but it’s a personal preference. If you’d like a more normal western-style handbag like Kelly’s version, check out this designer-inspired black handbag at Best Handbag Wholesale. They also carry studded leather bags, but if you’d prefer a more classic style bag, Kelly’s is certainly in that vein. Whichever way you go, Kelly or Gaga, make sure it fits your personal style – in the end, that’s what really matters.

Jessica Biel carries a western style handbag. Photo from Bag That Style.

The Jerome Dreyfuss handbag, small enough to be considered a purse instead of a hobo, has all the distinct qualities of western styles. The brown leather purse’s most notable and visible characteristic is the brown fringe in front. Not too long and neither too sporadic, the fringe gives it a clear western look from a distance. Aside from this aspect, the pictures of this handbag reveal a detailed border around the leather, reminiscent of the detail that goes into designing a pair of cowboy boots. Together, these two elements elevate an ordinary brown handbag to a unique western look.

Western styles come in several price ranges. If you’re looking for a similar handbag like Biel’s but can’t afford the hefty price tag, consider designer inspired options. As western style is practically pervasive in high-end fashion these days, handbags that emulate these looks keep the same style but offer it at a much lower price. At Best Handbag Wholesale, such western handbags have the same brown leather body as Biel’s bag and are embellished. Aspects like fringe, side and strap detail, and rhinestones and conchos elevate an ordinary bag into a trendsetting style.