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Because Nobody Likes a Faker

Published 10.10.2006 | Permanent Link | Comments (7)

We're doing something a little different this week for a variety of rather boring reasons (but mostly to accomodate for my spectacular laziness), and spreading the questions out over a few days instead of posting one massive novel-like column on Wednesdays. And yeah, I KNOW, it's the Wednesday Advice Smackdown, but back in the old days it probably appeared on Thursday and Fridays WAAAAY more times than Wednesdays anyway, so really? Not very different after all

So please, check back every day this week for additional questionosity, or just subscribe to the feed and let the magic of RSS tell you when we've updated.

I couldn't help but think of you, Amalah, and the horror you undoubtedly would have felt as I attended my first "Purse Party" yesterday. A woman came to my friend's house and literally dumped bags full of knock-offs on the floor - Kate Spade, Coach, Prada, Chanel, etc.

I've seen bags that mimic brand styles that are obviously fake - instead of the "LV" logo there are different letters similarly styled - but these looked (to my untrained eye) legit. Sure, there were one or two with labels askew, but the majority were pretty nice. My question is this: how do they make these knock-offs and how can I tell the difference? I understand that you can sew any label on any bag, but there were bags with "Coach Established 1941" (I think) stamped in the leather. Some even came with storage bags!

You will be happy to know that I did not buy anything. There's a Tori bag I've had my eye on since you featured it some time ago and I couldn't see spending $60 I could be putting toward the real deal on a cheap imitation. Thanks for giving us the benefit of your experience!

Talix18

Ah, the fake handbags. There are good fakes and bad fakes, but in the end, they are all fakes and not worth your handbag dollars. Back when I first moved to DC (many many years ago, when I was young and naïve and broke), I become positively giddy at the sight of all those vendors selling knock-off bags in Georgetown and excitedly paid about $30 for a fake Kate Spade.

“Why would anyone pay for the real thing?” I asked snootily as I admired my bargain.

Well, now I know a few reasons: the fakes don’t hold up as well as the real thing, and in some cases (like my Kate Spade bag) don’t even hold up as well as a bag you could buy for around the same price. For $40 I could have gotten an awesome Melie Bianco or a trendy Nine West or something completely different that wouldn’t make me look like an unimaginative label slave. All of those bags would have most likely outlasted the knock-off, which pretty much fell apart in less than six months.

I learned my lesson. Those bags, in the long run, aren’t really a bargain. Plus, I looked dumb, because that bag looked F-A-K-E.

And let's not forget one last eensy weensy detail here: counterfeiting is illegal. It is linked to organized crime, terrorists, gangs, corrupt custom officials, bribery, tax dodges, sweatshops and child labor. Just so we can carry around something stamped with a somewhat-convincing LV logo. There’s something kind of icky about that, no?

But! You did not ask for a morality lesson! You asked how to spot the fakes! Because yes, some of them are crazy convincing. I know I’ve looked at a few and wondered if I was looking at a knock-off…or looking at the real thing that somehow “fell off the truck, nudge nudge wink wink I also have the Rolexes for the pretty lady.”

Most of the time there’s just something vaguely “off” about the bags. The quality just isn't there. The stitching is crooked or there’s a hanging thread or the handles look painted. Sometimes the leather just doesn’t smell right. I've always felt like the fakes feel lighter and stiffer than the real thing. And most of them are missing little details that only someone really familiar with the brand could spot.

For example, all the hardware on a Coach bag is stamped with the Coach logo. The stamp should be straight and not smudged. The bag should have a one-sided Coach hangtag with stitching or other details that match the details of the bag. The leather patch inside the bag should be sewn in, not glued, and stamped with a 7- or 8-digit registration number. Ideally there should be a registration card and product info pamphlet in one of the inner pockets. The leather should be buttery and not too stiff. The stitching and workmanship should be impeccable. There will not be a single stitch out of place or ANY flaws in the symmetry. And of course, it should come in the branded dustbag.

A little Googling turned up similar guides for Louis Vuitton and Juicy Couture.

Like you said, the counterfeiters can ape almost all of this stuff. The stamps on the hardware tends to be the best giveaway since it’s expensive and easy to mess up, but the "quality" fakes can still look pretty good.

So! Some general rules:

1) If it’s an obscenely screamingly good deal, it’s probably a fake. And probably not even a GOOD fake.

2) If you aren’t buying from the bag’s actual manufacturer or a department store, always ALWAYS be a little wary. Especially if you’re buying online. Click around and see where they get their merchandise from (it’s usually in the Terms & Conditions section). Make sure there’s a return policy. A site like eluxury.com is an “authorized” designer retailer, while discount sites like Zappos.com and Bluefly.com are not. This doesn’t mean the stuff there is fake, it just means you should examine the stuff carefully before tossing the return label aside. These sites would NEVER knowingly sell counterfeit goods, but again, some of these fakes are just that convincing. (Gucci vs. Daffy’s, anyone?)

3) Obviously, eBay is a haven for counterfeit goods. And bargains! You just have to be really, really careful. I only buy from power sellers with tons of feedback. And they must accept PayPal, which adds another layer of protection to the transaction. (The one time I didn’t heed my own advice and bought from some random girl who only took checks I ended up with a Juicy Couture minidress of verrrry questionable origin.) Make sure the photos are of the ACTUAL bag you’ll be getting and not an image ganked from the online catalogue. A good seller will take good photos of the details and be willing to send additional pictures as well. You want to see phrases like “NEW WITH TAGS” and stuff about original packaging and where the bag came from. A real Coach bag from the outlet will still come with complete packaging and paperwork. Look out for things like “inspired by” or “styled like.” (Like “Tiffany-style” earrings or whatnot.) And rule #1 applies here as well. You aren’t ever going to get a real Louis Vuitton for $100, on eBay or anywhere.

AlphaFoxyMama Kozbi, who can spot a fake at 20 paces yet loves the bargains, also offered up the very informative Purse Forum (forum.purseblog.com) message boards, and mentioned that “there are groups on ioffer.com dedicated to helping you figure out if you've got a fake.” Thanks Kozbi!

And because I'm ambitious, let's look at some photos:

coach1.jpg

This "SUPER HIGH QUALITY" bag is selling for $60 and comes with "DUST BAG, AUTHENTICITY CARD, SERIAL NUMBER AND COACH SIGNATURE." The generic styling and cheesy-looking piping would make me suspicious, while the ridiculous MADE IN ITALY tag seals the deal. Coach is an American company. The bags used to be made in New York, and are now made in China. FAKE.

coach2.jpg

This is the only photo the seller is offering of this bag ("FROM THE FALL CAOCH CATOLOG"). Yeah. No thanks. PROBABLY FAKE, DEFINITELY DUMB.

lv3.jpg

The other photos of this Louis Vuitton bag featured close-ups on the hardware, which was indeed stamped with the LV logo. But from this angle...yeah. It's not even close to the actual design of the bag. Those gold...whatever-they-are things on the bottom are crooked, as is almost every other seam. And that leopard-print is supposed to be sheared calf, whereas the maker of this bag apparently just skinned some poor stuffed plush animal instead. Another reason to demand LOTS of pictures. FAKE.

ce_1.JPG

This is the same style bag as the previous photo. The seller offers an authenticy guarantee and the listing featured quite a few high-res photos of the detailing, hardware and various ID cards and original packaging. It looks pretty darn good. REAL, BUT ALSO $3,550 SO THERE YOU HAVE IT.

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Comments (7):

Kelly Phillips said:

I have been invited to these parties before, and my manta is always, "I don't buy fake stuff." Period. I hate fake purses. I grew up in the time of the D & B craze when 8th graders(!!!) HAD to have a D & B. And the fakes were super obvious.
I may not have gay-dar, but I've got purse-dar.

Posted on October 11, 2006 11:48

Laura said:

I'd still be wary about the ebay powersellers. I bought a lacoste shirt and a ralph lauren pink pony shirt from a seller with thousands of +ve feedback and the shirts were definitely fake.

Luckily I was able to return them...

Posted on October 11, 2006 12:32

BethanyWD said:

One additional thing I've learned is the best way to safeguard yourself against fakes (but still get a good deal on e-bay) is to KNOW YOUR PRODUCT. Go to the high-end department stores and examine closely the Coach, Kate Spade or whatever bags. Know what the styles look like, the colors it comes in, what the sitching is like, etc. You'll soon be able to tell the great craftsmanship of a quality handbag. That way you'll have knowledge when you're shopping for a deal on e-bay.

Posted on October 11, 2006 16:48

Meredith said:

Looks like even my shopping temple Target got caught in the counterfit shennanigins: http://www.startribune.com/104/story/717281.html.

When I first heard about this, I was going to email you, Amalah, so you could let your legion of Coach fans that they would soon appear at local Targets, but then decided not to. Because 1) it didn't even seem like they were selling at much of a discount and 2) part of the reason I love Target is they present the view that hip and inexpensive doesn't have to equal crap and things of decent quality don't have to cost a fortune. So why even sell Coach? When Isaac Mizrahi and Mossimo make such cute stuff? Does Target want to become the retailer that sells what everybody else has, but at half price?

But I digress. For me, it's another reason to stay away from trendy/overpriced brand names and to love thrift store shopping! (Yet, I love to read about YOUR Coach adoration - go figure.)

Posted on October 11, 2006 17:48

Kate said:

Very informative, Amy! I was at a flea market this weekend and there were fake bags everywhere. I've never been much of a handbag girl, so I never buy expensive purses, but I would also never buy something with "Prada" glued to the front of it, because it looks so fake and tacky. A good fake, though, might make me reconsider.

Posted on October 12, 2006 18:03

Kate said:

...Of course, after reading this and looking at the pictures, I totally want a Coach purse.

Posted on October 12, 2006 18:05

carrisa said:

I fell victim on ebay to a fake Coach wallet. It was the first Coach wallet I had ever owned and I had no idea it was a fake.. even after I got it. It wasn't until I won my second Coach wallet on ebay that I realized the first was a fake. The second was so much nicer than the first I couldn't believe it. I never left feedback on the first wallet. And it was actually an accident. But a happy accident at that. I also believe that the seller didn't realize it was a fake either since it was the only Coach item listed in their selling history and they were frequent sellers. So no harm no foul. I'm over it.
Mostly because the real Coach wallet I got for $4.25 in a Coach mystery auction. And it's a full sized checkbook wallet. So score one for me!

And thanks to Amy, among a few others I'm now the proud owner of 4 REAL Coach purses and 1 one real Coach wallet. Because it was your own addiction/obsession with them that turned me on to them in the first place.

Thanks!

Posted on October 13, 2006 15:02

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Amalah is a pseudonym of Amy Corbett Storch. A Washington D.C.-based freelance writer. The Smackdown is published on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. You can follow Amy's daily mothering adventures at www.amalah.com. Also, it's pronounced AIM-ah-lah.

Amy also documented her second pregnancy in a Weekly Pregnancy Calendar, Zero to Forty.

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