It's a Baguette! Never-used 1997 MONSAC Original Ash-Gray Leather with Dust Bag

The history of the short-lived Monsac original handbag brand is an interesting one. Monsac bags were known for their natural Italian vachetta leather bags and small leather goods that mimicked the quality and craftsmanship of high-end designer bags. Monsac bags were not copies or dupes of high-end bags, but mid-priced alternatives for women who loved style and quality. (Nordstrom and Marshall-Fields were the best places to buy these bags in their heyday.) This particular bag is an early Monsac from 1997, designed in response to the runaway success of Fendi’s “Baguette,” but with a 1997 retail price of only $238 – well within the range of upscale but not wealthy buyers. It is new in the original dustbag and unused. It is made in Italy of quality vachette leather, lined with the Monsac logo canvas lining. One inside zipper pocket and one outside flap pocket. Measures 12.5 by 6 by 3.5 inches, with an 8-inch strap drop. (Approximately the same size as the original Fendi Baguette.) Monsac was founded by Russian émigrés Rachel and Eugene Gershburg, who had worked in the New York fashion industry for decades. Rachel created the designs and Eugene ran their company, named “Monsac” both as the French term for “my bag” and after their favorite French village of Monsac. Monsac handbags manufactured today are not the same brand (which is why you will often see the Gershburg bags sold as “Monsac Original”), but a newer brand owned by Jack Gomme and manufactured in Paris.