Article: St. Louis Firm Looks to Micro-Designer Handbags for Success.

By Shera Dalin, St. Louis Post-Dispatch Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

Jan. 28--Melbourne Manufacturing Co. is tapping a new market -- micro-designer handbags, a niche that could rejuvenate the 81-year-old company.

Recently, Melbourne has plied a steady business, sewing about 27,000 purses a year for Navy cadets. But that four-year contract is about to end, and it's uncertain whether the company will win the work again, said owner Dan Fendelman.

Making purses for shoe company catalogs accounts for another 20,000 to 30,000 handbag orders a year.

Now, Fendelman is focused on one of the hottest fashion trends: designer ...

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