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Bringing Home the Birkin

By Michael Tonello

Product Image: Bringing Home the Birkin

Bringing Home the Birkin

Only 1 item left in stock
Description
“[A] memoir of . . . madcap travels, triumphs and humiliations. [Tonello] peels back the layers of pretension at the eminent design house. . . . Anyone who’s ever stepped into a luxury boutique and felt the sting of the doorman’s disapproval will find a hero in Tonello.” —Miami Herald  The hilarious, whirlwind account of an insider’s years spent globe-trotting in search of the handbag called “a better investment than gold”: the Birkin. With a life that reads like a heist novel, Michael Tonello reveals the secret to bagging this legendary purse, coveted by celebrities and status-seekers around the world. For more than twenty years, the Hermès Birkin bag has been the iconic symbol of fashion, luxury, and wealth. Though the bag is often seen dangling from the arms of celebrities, there is a fabled waiting list of more than two years to buy one from Hermès, and the average fashionista has a better chance of climbing Mount Everest in Prada pumps than of possessing one of these coveted carryalls. Unless, of course, she happens to know Michael Tonello . . . Michael’s newfound career started with an impulsive move to Barcelona, a vanished job assignment, no work visa, and a Hermès scarf sold on eBay to generate some quick cash. But soon the resourceful Michael discovered the truth about the waiting list and figured out the secret to getting Hermès to part with one of these precious bags. Millions of dollars worth of Birkins later, Michael had become one of eBay’s most successful entrepreneurs—and a Robin Hood to thousands of desperate rich women.  With down-to-earth wit, Michael chronicles the unusual ventures that took him to nearly every continent, from eBay to Paris auction house and into the lives of celebrities and poseurs. Flirting with danger, Michael recounts the heady rush of hand delivering his first big score to famed songwriter Carole Bayer Sager in Paris; how he had to hire thugs to rescue a bag that one of his “shoppers” held for ransom; and the story of the Oscar-worthy performances that allowed him to snag “reserved” bags from other, less dogged Birkin seekers. Whether he’s relating his wining and dining, buying and selling, dodging and weaving, laughing and crying, or schmoozing and stammering, Michael is a master raconteur who weaves together tales of hunting Birkins in the world’s most posh locales, memories of meals that would make any gastronome salivate, anecdotes of obsessed collectors with insatiable desires, and sweetly intimate stories about his family, friends, and finding true love. The result is a memoir that is distinctive, fun, page-turning, and as addictive as its namesake.
Product details
Number of Pages:
272
Release Date:
2008-05-01
Publication Date:
2008-04-22
Publisher:
HarperCollins
Languages:
Original: English
ISBN10:
0061473332
ISBN13:
9780061473333
GPSR Manufacturer Reference:
[email protected]
Weight:
485 g
Height:
156 cm
Width:
236 cm
Thickness:
24 cm

Condition

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Good
The items bear minimal signs of past use, such as light scratches or memories in the form of markings. These signs of wear give the items a charming character and tell stories of their previous owners, while not affecting their functionality.
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