How a former waitress conquered the handbag industry
Anne Harper was a waitress at a Chicago restaurant in 2009 when she raised $100,000 from her well-heeled customers to start a handbag business.
Today her company, OMG Accessories, ships more than 1 million kitschy bags to Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Target and dozens of other national retailers after she bagged her biggest investor — Gerald Putnam, co-founder of Archipelago Holdings, which was acquired by NYSE for $3 billion back in 2005. Putnam holds a 40 percent stake in OMG.
Under-the-radar OMG, which had $6 million in sales last year with bags that cost less than $50, is ready for prime time, including a celebrity endorsement and more funding, Harper told the Post.