As most of you know, my passion for luxury handbags started a long time ago. As I started to buy and sell online, one thing that was clear to me early on, was that I never wanted to buy, own or sell any counterfeit bags. Not only would wearing a fake never feel as good as wearing the real deal, it also doesn’t align with my ethical standards. I could explain this in depth, but I’ll spare you the moral discussion.
The point is, I’m anti-fakes. I don’t want anything to do with them. Easier said than done, because the market is absolutely flooded with fakes. Both crappy ones you can spot from miles away, as well as very good imitations that are nearly impossible to tell apart from the real ones.
And yes, even 10 or more years ago this was already the case!
On top of that, fake bags are not at all the only problem with buying second hand.
There are many, many different ways scammers try to get to you.
For example, they could actually have the original bag for sale, but have no intention of actually shipping it to you.
Not that long ago, I bought a Chanel 19 bag, that checked all of the boxes. Good seller profile, clear photos of an authentic bag, willing to send more photos, videos, all of that.
Wanna know what the seller ended up shipping to me once I paid? A shoe. One damn shoe!
Don’t worry, I got my money back, but it was a long and tedious process. Just to say, scammers are so inventive, there are many ways to get fooled.
As I always tell my buyers… I get scammed so you don’t have to!
It’s a labor of love. You’re welcome 😉
So, things have gotten more and more complicated with buying second hand items. That’s why, when anyone claims they can spot a scam or a counterfeit bag easily within a few minutes, that’s a red flag to me.
In reality, this is simply not the case, no matter how experienced and knowledgeable you are.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; any reseller claiming they’ve never gotten scammed or bought (or even worse, sold!) a fake, is either lying, naïve, or just started in this business.
Let me tell you a story about a vintage Chanel Jumbo bag I bought many years ago, as one of my first Chanel bags. I bought this bag from a seasoned Chanel collector, someone who has a lot of knowledge and experience with specifically Chanel. I trusted her, and still trust her to this day. I was super happy with this bag, and never ever questioned authenticity, as it looked and felt perfect to me. The caviar leather, burgundy interior, zippers, stitchings, everything.
As the gold-plated hardware was fading a bit, I decided to bring it to Chanel for re-plating. The store employee looked at my bag and said “sure, let’s ship it off to the atelier in Paris”.
And off my bag went!
Weeks went by, and when I finally got the call from Chanel, it was not the call I was hoping for.
Turns out, when the artisans at the Chanel atelier opened up the bag to remove the hardware, they saw something wrong and realized it was a counterfeit bag. I was baffled.
This bag passed a Chanel collector, passed me, passed Chanel employees, and even made it as far as to the atelier in Paris, before anyone spotted it was apparently not an authentic Chanel bag.
Needless to say, this was painful, but it was a lesson I will never forget.
I see many resellers and shop owners with an overconfident attitude, thinking they will always see it when a bag is not authentic. But I know better!
In reality, some counterfeits are simply too good to recognize with the bare eye.
So, now what? We just can’t trust anything or anyone at all?
Well, in reality, that might be true…
No one knows absolutely everything.
I’ve worked with some of the most renowned authenticators in the world, and even they have doubts, and have been unable to determine authenticity in more than one occasion.
Some of you might have heard about the concept of ‘return-fraud’, with a big scandal that happened in New York a few years ago. A woman bought many designer bags from a shopping mall, and returned them a few days later according to their return policy.
The problem was that the woman returned counterfeit versions of the bags, and then sold the actual authentic bag online. The store employees didn’t recognize these were not the original ones, and took them back for a refund.
This way she scammed several high-end stores, which is bad as is… But even worse, the fake bags she returned ended up in the stores as well. So, as a result, people have actually bought fake items in the original store. Crazy, right?!
But this happens more often than you’d think.
Bethenny Frankel, a well known Real Housewive of New York, recently shared a similar journey on Instagram of her buying Manolo Blahnik shoes at TJMaxx, an official distributor, only to be told by a fan that they were clearly fake.
She went on and got herself the real ones, made side-by-side comparisons, and sparked many debates in the comments about the importance of authenticity and the responsibility of the stores.
The reality is that store employees rarely have any authentication knowledge. They are there to sell, not to inspect, and often have no idea how to separate the real from the high quality fake. Let alone have any knowledge of vintage collections and details, which can be very different from items in stores today.
Big, well-known second hand platforms perform poorly when it comes to authentication as well. When you sell hundreds of items daily, it becomes nearly impossible to have all items authenticated thoroughly, simply because there are not that many well-trained and experienced experts out there. Most big resale companies rely on young girls with only a few hours of training, and very little experience. This way, many fakes slip through the cracks.
So, short answer: no, you can’t trust anyone these days. Not even when you buy from companies who claim to authenticate all goods in-house, and actually not even when buying from the original store. Wild, I know!
But, luckily, there are also many resellers out there, like myself, who are doing their very best to prevent fake items from coming your way.
Through the years I’ve developed a third eye for materials, details and craftmanship, that can only be taught by experience. Of course, I do not know everything, but I surely see and feel way more than most people do when it comes to designer handbags. I focus on details that most would overlook, and I know better than to get fooled by things that would fool most.
But knowing that some fake bags simply can pass even the experienced human eye, what else can we do?
At Baghag, we strongly believe in technology, in combination with the human touch.
That’s why we recently started working with Entrupy.
Entrupy is an Artificial Intelligence-based authentication service that uses a scientifically-proven approach to protect buyers from counterfeits. The Entrupy device makes in-depth, macro photos of the used materials, and compares those to the ones in their database.
As it goes with AI, these systems learn constantly and will continue to get better and better as they get used more and more.
Is this 100% fail proof? No, it isn’t either. But it’s a whole lot more reliable than most human authenticators. This is why our shop uses AI-technology, on top of checking each and every bag by well-trained eyes. We believe the gold is in the combination of both!
For now, each bag you buy at Baghag gets checked at least twice; once by me, and once again by either another authenticator, or by Entrupy, or sometimes by all three.
Our goal is to make sure none of our buyers ever have to worry about buying a fake, and to this we’re dedicated!
But, if you’re buying online from platforms you don’t completely trust…
Let me give you a few red flags to watch out for, and some general tips.
Red flag #1: When a seller claims “It was a gift from my ex”… RUN! This is the most convenient lie scammers like to tell, to be able to withdraw from any responsibility after you find out it’s a fake.
Damn exes, can’t trust them, you know what I mean? *eyeroll*
Red flag #2: Vague responses. Always ask questions, and be mindful of the response. If you ask where they bought the item, and the response is for example ‘Paris’, well, that’s not a great answer.
That could mean anything from a crappy flea market to the official brand store.
Another typical one: when you ask if an item is authentic, and they respond with “it has the code inside”. Great, but that’s not what I asked you. Red flag!
Any honest seller will either openly tell you all the info they have without acting shady, or will tell you that they simply don’t know (and then you can decide for yourself whether to go through with it or not).
Red flag #3: Few and/or blurry photos. Always, ALWAYS ask for more and for specific photos. Obviously to get a good look at the details, but also, this way you can check whether the seller actually has the item in their possession, and isn’t just using some internet photo’s.
Tip #1: Don’t be fooled by packaging, dustbags, cards, receipts, etc. All of these get counterfeited, and in some cases really well. Some scammers also sell fake bags with authentic accessories. Remember, the ONLY thing that matters for authentication is the item itself!
Tip #2: Remember that if something looks too good to be true, it probably is.
Now, I’ve done some incredible deals myself, and I know it can happen. But be mindful and be realistic. Chances of someone actually selling, say, a Lady Dior bag for 1/5th of the retail price is really small.
When a deal looks too good, assume it’s a fake or a scam, and then look for proof that it’s not. Can you find proof it’s all real and legit? Amazing. If you can’t, stay with your fake theory.
Tip #3: Most importantly, if you don’t have the knowledge yourself, ALWAYS have your item checked immediately upon arriving by someone who does. There are many authenticators online, not all great, but it’s worth getting a second opinion just in case you missed something they do spot. The quicker you know something you bought is inauthentic, the better chance you have of getting your money back.
I hope these help!
Now, for the record, this is not meant in any way to discourage anyone from shopping online. It’s a jungle out there, and sadly there are many dishonest people, but there are lovely sellers as well who work with integrity and passion. Shopping online is tricky, but it can be so much fun!
So shop away, but don’t let anyone mess with your money or authenticity!
Xoxo
Baghag
