How to Spot Fake Designer Bags?
With the cost of designer handbags rising every season, many women who desire the look of high fashion without the high price tag turn to fake designer handbags. Unfortunately, fake bags are not only poorly constructed and less durable than the true items, they are also illegal.
I love the happiness that handbags bring me. I have collected many designer handbags. Here, I will share how to identify fake designer bags and the characteristics of fake designer bags.
Identifying Fake Designer Bags
Savvy consumers can easily spot fake designer handbags even if they've never seen a true designer bag. The quality of workmanship and other factors stand out on fake bags, and when designers are highly renowned for the exquisite work of their products, fakes are easy to notice.
Fake Bags by Cost
One of the biggest indicators of fake luxury bags is the price. True designer bags can be discounted, but they are never marked down to rock bottom clearance prices. Any seller that claims to have designer bags at too-good-to-be-true prices is telling the truth in one respect: the prices are too good to be true because, after all, they're not prices for true bags. If you see a Louis Vuitton Bag, for example, being sold for $40, you can bet your money it's a fake, since the prices for a real bag from this designer usually start at around $800.
Seller's Location and Amount of Bags Sold
The location the bags are being sold at is another indication of their authenticity; you won't be finding a genuine bag at a flea market or from a street vendor. To keep demand soaring, designers limit the number of each style in circulation, often restricting the number of bags one consumer may purchase in a specific time frame (typically three bags of one design per month). Any seller with a dozen of the same type of purse is likely trying to sell fake designer rather than the genuine article.
Features of Fake Designer Handbags
The bags themselves are always the biggest source of verification about whether they're authentic or counterfeit. When examining a bag that may be fake, check different features, including:
Fabric and materials: Fake bags use lower quality materials; leather may feel like plastic instead of being soft and supple or the dye job of the fabric is uneven and splotchy.
Stitching: Authentic designer bags have tight, even stitches, while replica designer bags may have loose, shoddy workmanship, uneven stitches, or even missing stitches where fabric (especially on the interior) is glued rather than sewn.
Labels: Interior labels of designer bags will say made in Italy (or other authentic location), and while some fake designer handbags do as well, others will stipulate made in Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, or other manufacturing nations.
Designer logos: Most designers affix signature logo plates to their bags. Those plates should be crisply printed, while fake plates may be blurry or slightly inaccurate. A common trick is to misspell the designer's name: Prada becomes Proda, for example. Also look for logos printed on interior linings - fake bags often lack this detail.
Authenticity documentation: Designer bags often come with certificates of authenticity to prove their origins. Fake bags will be missing this paperwork, though sellers may claim it will be mailed or was simply lost.
Incorrect styling: Counterfeits may be offered in colors or styles that authentic bags are not. Don't believe sellers who try to claim that the unusual design is simply rare and therefore a better deal.
Misaligned details: Bags that use rivets or crystals, such as Juicy Couture handbags, should have straight lines and symmetrical spacing; replicas bags are less carefully assembled and may have poorly aligned accents.
Initial damage: Designer bags are carefully wrapped (typically in paper or tissue) for protection until they reach the consumer. Any bag that exhibits damage when it is supposedly "new" is likely a fake item - look for scratches, scuffs, small tears, and other seemingly minor imperfections. The fashion handbag industry prides itself on superior quality, and such scratch-and-dent items would never be permitted to be sold.
Identifying fake designer bags is very important to consumers. Distinguishing genuine and fake brand-name bags can protect consumers' rights and property safety. Purchasing fake name brands may result in poor quality, fragile or health and safety hazards. The importance of understanding knockoff brands is to protect the brand reputation and business environment. Counterfeit brand-name products may damage the image of legitimate brands, reducing brand value and market share.
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