[2] Its original luxury[3] cotton bag product lines have expanded to include fashion and home accessories, office supplies, and patterned gifts.

Once back in Indiana, they borrowed a total of $500 from their husbands, bought some fabrics inspired by the Pierre Deux French Provençal look popular at the time, and had a seamstress friend develop prototype bags.

They hired local seamstresses as well as provided a loan for the creation of Phoenix Sewing, a company dedicated to making Vera Bradley products.

[5] A news story on Good Morning America generated more interest in the products when it featured an interview with college students about various campus trends, and one of the sorority girls had a Vera Bradley bag.

[5] The annual Spring Outlet Sale in Fort Wayne proved to be so popular that in 2005, the company sold out of products and the next year, a per-person spending cap was initiated.

The initial "#itsgoodtobeagirl" campaign was perceived as patronizing and old-fashioned,[3] but was quickly amended to portray women in active, unusual jobs and promoted the company's image as being socially conscious.

[5] The company has expressed concern regarding potential difficulty in dealing with tariffs the Trump administration has considered on goods imported from China.

[1] In 1993, Baekgaard and Miller initiated contributions to assist in funding research for a cure for breast cancer with a portion of Vera Bradley profits.

[15][16][17] Posts from the cancer researchers and Vera Bradley on Facebook, Instagram and the company's blog were used to help recruit patients for clinical trials.

[18] Research information is published on the website of the Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center at Indiana University for scientists to be able to collaborate toward a cure.