Contemporary Authors

• A Colorful Way of Living: How to Be More, Create More, Do More the Vera Bradley Way St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2017

1.  A colorful way of living : how to be more, create more, do more the Vera Bradley way LCCN 2017009307 Type of material Book Personal name Baekgaard, Barbara Bradley, author. Main title A colorful way of living : how to be more, create more, do more the Vera Bradley way / Barbara Bradley Baekgaard. Edition First edition. Published/Produced New York : St. Martin's Press, April 2017. Projected pub date 1704 Description pages cm ISBN 9781250121912 (hardback) Library of Congress Holdings Information not available.

• Amazon -

  BARBARA BRADLEY BAEKGAARD is a wife, mother, sister, friend, and grandmother. She is also the co-founder, designer, and Chief Creative Officer of Vera Bradley, and the driving force behind the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer. Barbara lives in Indiana and New York City.

• Fortune - http://fortune.com/2015/09/12/vera-bradley-founder-barbara-bradley-baekgaard/

  How Vera Bradley’s founder bagged success
  Dinah Eng
  Sep 12, 2015

  Don’t be drab. That notion impelled stay-at-home mom Barbara Bradley to begin selling colorful handbags—cutting fabric on her Ping-Pong table—in 1982. She borrowed $250 from her then husband and, with a co-founder and help from a passel of friends and family, launched Vera Bradley. Three decades, a remarriage, and a new surname (Baekgaard) later, she is 76 and her brand is sold in 2,700 specialty shops and 148 company-owned stores and garners annual sales of $509 million. Baekgaard’s story:
  I never saw myself going into business. I grew up in Florida, where my father was a sales rep and later part owner of a candle company. My mother, Vera Bradley, was a model for Elizabeth Arden in her youth.

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  I left college two credits shy of a bachelor’s degree, got married, and had four children in five years. I was a stay-at-home mom in Fort Wayne—my husband owned a paper distributorship—when I met Patricia Miller, who lived on the same street. We became friends. I loved hanging wallpaper, so Pat and I started Up Your Wall, a hobby that made us a little money hanging wallpaper.
  In 1982 we came back from visiting my parents in Florida and were at the Atlanta airport when we noticed no one was carrying anything colorful or fun. So we decided to start a company to make handbags and luggage for women. My mother had great style, and we decided to name the company Vera Bradley after her.
  We didn’t have any cash, so we each borrowed $250 from our husbands and bought some fabric. A seamstress made the first bag, then we put an ad in the newspaper for people who wanted to sew in their homes. We cut fabric out on a Ping-Pong table, put it with a zipper and other elements in a bag, and gave it to the women who would take them home to sew.

  I still had two of my four children at home. We asked them to refrain from answering the phone between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. so there was a more professional atmosphere.

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  Before long, a friend who believed in the idea gave us a check for $2,500. He said if we were successful, it was a loan. If we weren’t, it was a gift. That check was huge to us. Six months later we went to a bank, seeking a $5,000 loan. The first banker who offered us money seemed reluctant, so we rejected it. You want to work with people who have faith in you. We took out the loan from another bank.
  The first year, we did $10,000 in sales. Then things got chaotic. By our third year, we hit $1 million.
  We moved into the Taylor Martin Paper Co. building in 1984 and rented space upstairs for the sewing so we could concentrate on marketing and sales. My husband and I divorced, and in 1987, Vera Bradley bought a lot and built its own building in town.
  Early on we knew we didn’t know how to price things or do cost analyses. So we got in touch with SCORE, a nonprofit that provides free business mentoring to entrepreneurs, and a volunteer was assigned to help us. I started calling on stores, showing the bags to owners. We had no trouble getting stores to buy our products because there was nothing like it out there.
  The business grew with the help of friends and family. My kids helped. My mother and a sister were sales reps. We’d walk through an airport or be at a party, carrying a bag, and people would ask about it. That was our marketing.
  My father always said, “In business, you sell yourself first, your company second, and the product third,” and he was right. Business is all about forming relationships and having a company that reflects your values.
  In 1984 we took a small booth in the Chicago Gift Show. A couple of years later there was an exhibitors’ party. A friend and I saw a little girl and started talking to her. I had a pair of magnet earrings in my purse and put them on her. She showed her mother, who invited us to sit with her. It turned out the woman was the wife of Will Little, the head of the gift show, and we became good friends. Will came to see our booth and moved us to one of the premier aisles of the Chicago Gift Show, and a year later nominated me to its board of directors. I ended up marrying the president of the show, Peer Baekgaard.
  Being on the board, I met everyone in the gift industry. When we got into other gift shows, I kept wondering what I should wear to them. So one weekend, I made up a skirt, camisole, and jacket out of the fabric of our bags, and people wanted to buy the clothes. That’s how we got into the clothing business.
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  We used to do all the billing ourselves. In 1992, I sent a bill to a gentleman for $100. Those were the days of fax machines, and he sent back a note saying, “I do not owe you $100, and if I did, I doubt Vera Bradley would drop dead over it.” It was a bad week because my mother had just died. So I faxed him back a copy of her obituary and said, “You do, and she did.” I can’t remember if he paid or not, but my mother would have approved.
  We opened our first retail store in 2007. Our customers range in age from 8 to 80. We’re huge with baby bags, student backpacks, and accessories. Usually, a high school student wouldn’t want to carry something her grandmother was carrying, but three generations of women carry us. It’s a sisterhood that I’m proud of.
  Pat retired but is still on the board. I’m not a great finance person, so I stick to creativity, design, and marketing. I’ve got four amazing children, 12 grandchildren, and a wonderful second husband who passed away, so I’ve been a very fortunate person. Knowing my attitude, if I had a failure, I probably wouldn’t recognize it as one.

  My Advice
  Barbara Bradley Baekgaard, Co-founder and chief creative officer, Vera Bradley
  Appreciate your employees. When we first started, we’d put $50 in employees’ birthday cards and say, “This has to be spent on you.” Now, with 3,000 employees, we still put a $50 bill in their cards. Finance asks every year if we can just put the money in people’s paychecks, and I say no. When you have found money in cash, it’s just more meaningful.
  Words make a difference. I hate the word “boss.” At Vera Bradley we say that we work with someone, not for someone.
  Having fun creates better teamwork. Our Happy Committee is composed of associates who plan special, fun events, like shopping trips to Chicago, kayak trips, and treats of ice cream or cookies to celebrate company accomplishments.

• Forbes - https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2017/04/04/barbara-bradley-baekgaard-what-she-learned-on-her-journey-to-the-top-of-retail/#7de8a2752f41

  Apr 4, 2017 @ 08:00 AM 1,459
  The Little Black Book of Billionaire Secrets
  Barbara Bradley Baekgaard: What She Learned On Her Journey To The Top of Retail

  Dan Schawbel , Contributor
  null
  Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

  Brian Kelly
  Barbara Bradley Baekgaard
  I spoke to Barbara Bradley Baekgaard, the author of A Colorful Way of Living: How to Be More, Create More, Do More the Vera Bradley Way, about the obstacles she overcame while starting Vera Bradley, how she learned to be a business owner, why women face challenges in the workplace, how she manages her life and her best advice.
  Baekgaard co-founded Vera Bradley, Inc. in 1982 and has been its Chief Creative Officer since May 2010. From 1982 to June 2010, Ms. Baekgaard served as co-president of Vera Bradley Designs, Inc. and she serves as a Director of Vera Bradley, Inc. since 1982. She serves as a Board Member of the Indiana University Cancer Center Development and Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer. Her awards include 2007 Country Living Entrepreneur Award and 2006 Gifts and Decorative Accessories Industry Achievement Award.
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  Dan Schawbel: How did you originally start your business and what were some of the early struggles that you overcame?
  Barbara Bradley Baekgaard: We saw a void in the market while traveling through the Atlanta airport and started our company the next day (to the horror of anyone who went to business school!). We had to borrow $250 each, as we simply didn’t have the money. It was both a struggle and a blessing to know what we didn’t know. Treating people right was the main avenue that allowed us to get the help we needed from others.
  Schawbel: As someone who had very little experience as a founder, how did you get educated on the business and who were some of your biggest supporters?
  Baekgaard: We looked to SCORE (Service Corp of Retired Executives) to help us. The members were so extremely helpful in giving us all the knowledge and encouragement we needed to be successful. We made sure to surround ourselves with the best people and to ask lots of questions.

  Schawbel: What are some career obstacles that many women face in the workplace and how they can overcome them?
  Baekgaard: When we first started out, men usually were so eager to tell us ‘what you girls should do.' This was of huge benefit to us, as they didn’t see us as competition and would gladly hand out business advice. Had we been men, I don’t know if they would given us business advice. We played along and built a successful company. Now we’re able to empower both the men and women who work for us and buy our products.
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  Schawbel: As someone running a business, how do you balance your needs with your company’s and your families?
  Baekgaard: We’ve created a culture of family at Vera Bradley, so truly, it all goes hand-in-hand. We spend more awake hours at the office than we do at home, so we’ve ensured that the culture of the office is one that mimics a family culture. We work hard to keep the work/life balance in check. Flexibility is something we strive for.
  Schawbel: What are your top three pieces of career advice?
  Baekgaard:
  1. Know what your weaknesses are and surround yourself with people who are strong in those areas.
  2. Treat the janitor the same way you’d treat the CEO.
  3. Sell yourself first, your business second and your product third.
  Dan Schawbel is a keynote speaker and the New York Times bestselling author of Promote Yourself and Me 2.0. Subscribe to his free newsletter.

  Barbara Bradley Baekgaard

  Barbara Bradley Baekgaard and close friend and neighbor Patricia Miller were catching a flight in Atlanta in 1982 when they noticed how drab women's travel bags looked. Each borrowed $250 from her husband and went to work in Baekgaard's basement in Fort Wayne, Indiana making handbags out of floral quilted cotton. Their business became Vera Bradley, which now sells half a billion dollars worth of handbags, luggage and other accessories a year through 154 company owned stores and more than 3,200 other locations. Baekgaard, who was co-president until 2010 and is still involved in the design process of the colorful bags, named the business after her mother, a former Elizabeth Arden model. As part of estate planning, Baekgaard has put most of her shares in trusts for her family. She is currently a member of the Indiana University Simon Cancer Center Development Board and a board member of the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer.

• Journal Gazette - http://www.journalgazette.net/news/local/20170831/vera-bradley-co-founder-gives-up-creative-control

  Thursday, August 31, 2017 1:00 am
  Vera Bradley co-founder gives up creative control
  SHERRY SLATER | The Journal Gazette

  Vera Bradley Designs co-founder Barbara Bradley Baekgaard is giving up creative control of the company beginning Friday.
  Baekgaard's decision to step down as chief creative officer of the Fort Wayne company was announced in a one-paragraph filing Wednesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission but wasn't mentioned in Vera Bradley's quarterly earnings report.
  She will continue to be employed by the company and will remain on its board. Baekgaard will focus on the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer, a planned local boutique hotel and personal appearances to support her book, “A Colorful Way of Living,” spokeswoman Holly Wagner said in an email. All of Baekgaard's royalties from the publication go to the foundation. 
  Less than four hours after the disclosure, Vera Bradley's stock had lost more than 10 percent of its value on the New York Stock Exchange, dropping to $9.01 from its opening price of $10.76. Shares closed Wednesday at $9.14, down 93 cents from Tuesday's close of $10.07.
  It's unclear whether investors were influenced more by Baekgaard's decision to take a step back or the company's 57 percent decline in quarterly earnings, as compared to the same quarter of last year.
  Vera Bradley reported second fiscal quarter earnings of $2.19 million, or 6 cents per diluted share, on $112 million in revenue. The company's 2016 second quarter earnings were $5.11 million, or 14 cents a share, on $119 million in revenue. Sales declined by 6 percent.
  Looking at six-month results, the first half of Vera Bradley's fiscal year, the company reported a loss of $1.86 million compared to earnings of $7.53 million reported the previous year.
  Special, after-tax charges that reduced the most recent quarter's profit included $1.5 million spent on strategic plan consulting fees.
  Investors and employees are, no doubt, hoping that investment pays off. Vera Bradley has struggled for at least four years to recapture its initial growth trajectory, which was fueled by soccer moms who fell in love with the company's quilted-cotton, floral bags.
  CEO Rob Wallstrom said Vera Bradley executives have spent the past three years working to strengthen and modernize the brand.
  The effort has made progress, he said in a statement, but hasn't come together as quickly as expected because the entire retail sector is struggling.
  “Consequently, we are in the process of refining our business model and strategic plan, which will involve taking a much more aggressive approach to turning around our business over the next three years,” he said.
  Vera Bradley has hired an outside consulting firm to review the company and help draft what Wallstrom calls Vision 20/20. The plan is expected to focus on product and pricing while lowering expenses for selling, general and administrative needs.
  The effort will include cutting back on clearance sales, dropping unpopular products and being more selective when deciding to add new items to the product line.
  Most of the changes won't happen before February, Wallstrom said, but he expects they will reduce the next fiscal year's revenue by $40 million to $60 million. He expects up to $30 million of that to be offset by lower sales and administrative costs.
  “By executing Vision 20/20, we believe we are on the right course for the future, restoring our brand health, improving operating performance and enhancing shareholder value,” Wallstrom said.
  Vince Martin, a stockbroker who analyzes companies for investment website Seeking Alpha, wasn't impressed with Vera Bradley after its first fiscal quarter report.
  At that time, Wallstrom was talking about increasing customer traffic in the retailer's stores and on its website.
  “To be honest, I'm skeptical that goal will be achieved,” Martin wrote in July. “For one, Vera Bradley has missed pretty much all of its goals over the last three years.”
  Martin predicted the company's stock price would continue to fall.
  “Management has tried to pull pretty much every lever it can over the past few years of declining sales,” he wrote. “But the general headwinds from mall traffic and handbag demand are pretty tough to overcome.”
  Vera Bradley's future could depend largely on the style instincts of Baekgaard's successor. Beatrice Mac Cabe has been appointed the next chief creative officer. 
  Mac Cabe, who joined Vera Bradley as a vice president of design last year, previously served as chief creative director for Fossil Group Inc. for three years. Fossil makes handbags, wallets, watches and jewelry. She has also worked for Diane von Furstenberg, John Galliano, Marni, JC Penney and Camuto Group.
  Baekgaard praised Mac Cabe, a native of Ireland, in a statement emailed to The Journal Gazette. 
  “From day one, Beatrice and I hit it off, and I knew immediately that she was a perfect fit for our company,” Baekgaard said. “She has an amazing talent for design, is very passionate about Vera Bradley and totally believes in our brand. That is why I have so much confidence in her and am so excited for her to lead our creative and design efforts going forward.”
  Along with Mac Cabe's promotion, Vera Bradley announced Kim Colby, executive vice president of design, will step down effective Sept. 29.
  “Kim will continue to provide support to the company as an advocate for the Vera Bradley brand,” the SEC filing said.
  It's unclear whether Colby, who is a major shareholder, will be paid for that effort.
  Patricia Miller, who co-founded Vera Bradley with Baekgaard, retired from the company Oct. 31, 2012. Miller and her husband, Michael Miller, still serve on the company's board.
  Miller and Baekgaard founded Vera Bradley after noticing during an airport layover that women's luggage was anything but exciting. The women, who named the business for Baekgaard's mother, started their venture by spreading colorful fabric across a ping pong table, then cutting pieces that would be sewn into bags.
  The partners launched an initial public offering of stock in October 2010.
  sslater@jg.net 

A Colorful Way of Living: How to Be More, Create More, Do More the Vera Bradley Way

264.9 (Feb. 27, 2017): p89.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
A Colorful Way of Living: How to Be More, Create More, Do More the Vera Bradley Way
Barbara Bradley Baekgaard. St. Martin's, $26.99 (256p) ISBN 978-1-250-12191-2

This empowering offering is replete with practical strategies for leading a fulfilled life. In a breezy and friendly tone, Baekgaard, cofounder of the apparel and accessories line that bears her mother's name, Vera Bradley, doles out sage advice. Her advice includes being unafraid to take chances (without that, the company wouldn't exist, she insists), giving back (as she does with the Vera Bradley Foundation, a breast cancer charity), being ready to make friends anywhere, knowing your audience, and taking breaks. She calls her business strategy "ready, fire, aim"--meaning that if one always waited for the perfect market research and business plan, few companies would be created. Her business (and personal) style is inclusive, although she does note that on issues she's passionate about, like having all departments of her company under one roof, she will stand firm. Baekgaard's optimistic take on life and values-based leadership style will inspire readers, particularly those already smitten with her company's colorful goods. (Apr.)
Source Citation   (MLA 8th Edition)
"A Colorful Way of Living: How to Be More, Create More, Do More the Vera Bradley Way." Publishers Weekly, 27 Feb. 2017, p. 89. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA485671225&it=r&asid=b3ca507efea0bac9148cf1bfbb4a5c3d. Accessed 28 Sept. 2017.

Gale Document Number: GALE|A485671225

"A Colorful Way of Living: How to Be More, Create More, Do More the Vera Bradley Way." Publishers Weekly, 27 Feb. 2017, p. 89. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7CA485671225&asid=b3ca507efea0bac9148cf1bfbb4a5c3d. Accessed 28 Sept. 2017.

• I Like it Frantic
  https://ilikeitfrantic.net/a-colorful-way-of-living/
  Word count: 448

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  by Holly

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  If you’ve walked the mall or an airport or resort, you’ve seen them. Those brightly colored bags from the Vera Bradley company. I happen to have a few that I love. I still use my laptop bag because I’ve found that its the perfect size for me. It holds my laptop, mouse, various cords, planner and I still have space. In fact on Thursday’s when I do my big blogging day outside of the house, it also holds my lunch. Recently I was sent an advanced copy of the book A colorful Way of Living by Barbara Bradley Baekgaard. She is the cofounder of Vera Bradley. I was curious what this book would be all about. I mean how much could I learn about this line of bags? But it’s not really about the bags its so much more.

  The book A Colorful Way of Living: How to Be More, Create More, Do More the Vera Bradley Way introduces the reader to not only the beginning of the Vera Bradley brand but ways to live life with more inspiration and insight. A Colorful Way of Living offers practical inspiring advice to empower the reader. Whether you are looking to start a new life, balance career and family or a new graduate entering the workforce, there is good advice to get you going.
  The book is broken down into 5 sections with each section have several chapters. It starts with working on yourself and how you are looking at things (Perspective). How to get yourself ready for making yourself be the best you possible. The perspective section includes getting started to knowing your own strengths to defining success, making it fun and of course knowing that you’re going to slip up from time to time. The later sections include advice for relationships, work, every day and a broad overview for life itself. I think my biggest take away was from the embrace your success chapter. Part of this chapter states that growth is a slow and natural progression. That we must be patient and persistent. I’ve found this in all that we’ve done. In building my blog I’ve definitely reached some success that I’m happy with. I don’t expect it to be an overnight success. I’ve worked hard for 12 years building it up, growing relationships with other bloggers and brands. I can now embrace the success I have and continue to move confidently through more blogging work.

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