The Bite Magazine Issue 17

with some of the most prominent and well-respected design houses in the world. Our dedication to quality of both work and service has allowed us to develop an unrivalled reputation with our customers and commercial partners.” Given the fast success and growth of the business, they have expanded from their online services to now include four brick and mortar stores in Chelsea, Islington, Leeds and Newcastle. Here, clients can come and speak directly to a specialist about the services needed to repair and restore their items to their original glory. “Our unique, bespoke service is built upon our quality, pride and absolute focus on the needs of the customer.  We are acutely aware of the value (both financial and emotional) of the products we deal with. The repu- tation of our team is unrivalled. Our highly trained technicians are experts in their field and carefully reinstate thou- sands of valued handbags every year.” As such, this dedicated and talented team can do everything from deep cleanings, restorations, and stain removals, colour changes to replacing and repairing hard- ware and stitching. Overall, if it’s broke, they can fix it. It was this promise of exquisite care that actually led me to taking in my own beloved Saint Laurent Sac de Jour in for a few minor repairs and deep interior cleaning. Now, I love this bag, like LOVE it, and when I accidently scratched the leather when putting it above me in the overhead compartment on a flight back from Greece, I actually cried and cursed the flight attendant for making me ‘stow my belongings’. Damn flight regulations, but before that I had also gotten a tiny smudge of red nail polish on the inte- rior lining from reaching in to retrieve my wallet to pay for a manicure… again, silly first world problems. But, this bag had been a huge Birthday gift from my husband and I couldn’t let her go on looking more and more banged up. I had to remedy the issue. So, after my introduction to the Handbag Clinic at the PURE London event, I decided to take them up on their offer to oversee the care of my baby. I ventured to their Islington loca- tion, and after a brief, yet incredibly detailed meeting in which we discussed exactly what would happen to my bag, how it would be cleaned, the leather scratch buffed away, how much my individual bag repair would be, and their excellent insurance protection policy of up £20,000, I departed empty handed, feeling quite uneasy that I’d just entrusted my bag to total strangers for the next several weeks. But the team lived up to the company’s stellar repu- tation of incredible customer service; as I was updated on the status of my bag’s repair every step of the way. When the day came, they called to inform me that my bag was ready to be picked up. I gave an enthusiastic cheer of joy, hung up, and literally ran from my home to retrieve my better-than new baby! And wow, did it look good! From the retail associates, tech team and customer service staff at the Handbag Clinic, this amazing staff managed to hold this nervous girl’s hand the entire time my bag was in triage, never letting me feel taken advantage of or ignored. And while yes, the price to have a full cleaning and restoration can be a bit steep, when one looks at it as a whole, it’s incredibly and absolutely affordable compared to buying a whole new bag or taking it to another service. (Word to the wise, never, ever, EVER take your bag or leather goods to a dry cleaner or cobbler for repairs, they will more than likely ruin it!) Everything this company has set out to provide for a market of people wanting to treat and maintain their finer accessories has come true. The Handbag Clinic is the cosmetic spa for all your designer accessories ailments and a haven for its owners. In addition to restoring handbags and leather accessories, the Handbag Clinic also buys and resells gently used and pre-owned designer bags and accesso- ries. Please be sure to check out their online and in store collections available for purchase. www.handbagclinic.co.uk bite bags