Everyone knows that the most fashionable bags and purses are found on the shoulders of the women of New York. But what you may not know is that many of those bags are actually created in the city as well.

For the past ten years, some of the most hip, stylish bags and accessories have been made by the Brooklyn-based company INSIDERS1. You may have seen them at the Grand Central Holiday Fair or in various boutiques and shops around the city. Each INSIDERS1 piece features a digitally customized image hand-printed on the finest leather. The images are distinctly urban, and when the collection was first launched, they consisted of skylines, streets, landmarks, signs, and graffiti from New York. Only recently has the collection expanded to include images from five great European cities: Rome, Berlin, Paris, Barcelona, and Amsterdam.

INSIDERS1 was founded by designer Sigal de-Mayo (photo below), who grew up in Israel surrounded by constant creativity from her mother, who was an artist, and her father, an architect. She dreamed of someday living in New York, and after ten years as an art director for an Israeli advertising agency, she moved to Brooklyn. The incredible energy and spirit of the city inspired her to start giving “insider” tours of New York, showing tourists the underground places that she had discovered.

The tours were popular, but her real success came from the promotional t-shirts she had printed with images from the places on the tour, images she had created from her own photos and then manipulated, playing with the effects of the light, color, tone, and perspective. She began to experiment more with the photography and printing process and then with printing the images onto leather and using them on bags and other accessories. Without realizing it, she had developed a whole product line, and people were asking her where she got such fantastic items. That’s how the company started, and it’s through INSIDERS1 that she met her business partner who also became the love of her life and her husband, Fabio Otalora (with Sigal, below).

Fabio, who grew up in Bogato, Columbia, had been living in New York for almost twenty years when he went to a Halloween party and met the most beautiful and exotic woman. He was instantly smitten, and when she invited him to come to her shop so he could see the line of bags and accessories that she had designed, he was knocked off his feet. Soon, INSIDERS1 became their company and so much more. Using Fabio’s business acumen, the company experienced astonishing growth, and through his keen production management, they expanded the brand while maintaining the quality of their products.

De-Mayo originally drew her inspiration from the creative energy and spirit of New York and designed the INSIDERS1 product line to be like the city itself: durable, functional, captivating, and chic. There are thirty images to choose from as well as a variety of products and style options. They offer bags for every occasion, such as purses, tote bags, evening clutches, pouches, and messenger bags. Accessories include gloves, wallets, bracelets, luggage tags, and journals. With INSIDERS1 pieces, day or night, you’ll never leave the house without looking stylish and sharp.

INSIDERS1 also does custom orders for companies and organizations, creating unique product lines to increase brand awareness at trade shows, festivals, and events. They can also customize the ideal corporate gift to present to valued clients and employees or to give as a special commemoration of a business milestone.

But for the Woman Around Town just looking for a new purse, gloves, or a journal that’s sleek, modern, and has that urban edge that shows you’re a fashionable and proud New Yorker, go to INSIDERS1.com and start shopping!