Today's post is going to be very un-popular with some, but it's a topic that I recently became interested in and continue to research. I want to learn everything I can on the topic, not to get anyone in trouble, but to inform others, which is my goal with my research anyway.
Have you ever been invited to a purse party? Lately I've been getting several invites. From purse's, jewelry, makeup, food to just about anything. There are so many do-it-yourself hosts for various companies and I know a lot of women who've become these consultants. So I know that Avon parties, and MaryKay parites, Silpada, Tastefully Simple, and many others are legal, but what about purse parties? Well, that depends on what they are selling. You need to be very careful about what you are buying. Educate yourself before you buy or get sucked into hosting one of these parties. You don't want to be supporting illegal activities.
So what about these purse parties? Are they legal? Well the short answer is this, No, not if they are selling "designer" handbags, with the companies logo/trademark on the bag or have a tag with that information on it. Designers like Chanel, Luis Vitton, Burberry, Juicy Couture and others are NOT going to have their bags for sale at home parties. If you are invited to one and see these bags have the those designers logos on the bag, do not assume it's the real deal - it isn't in just about all the cases. Unless the person selling is buying directly from the companies or their approved distributors it's not legal. More than likely what you are looking at is a knock-off bag that is not produced in any way by the designers company, but rather likely to be made in China or other places and possible by sweat shop children. How do you know it's fake? Well price and quality are #1 things you can spot. Some bags, I've seen these even in online stores selling copy's or replicas, sell these bags claiming to be high-quality and rather than the $400+ price tag of the real deal, these fakes are sold much, much cheaper. The ones at purse parties seem to go for well under $100 - that is your first clue.
But the bags have the designer logo on it? How can that be if it's fake? This makes it much harder to spot a fake, but logo or not, it's fake if you did not buy it from an approved dealer or the company itself. An approved dealer is not going to be on the street selling, nor will they be in your home, or their home selling. It's going to be a store, and the price is going to be much higher. The quality will be much better. Fake bags don't use the best material or have the best stitching, but a big giveaway is the lining on the inside. If it's not silk, not soft, it's not real regardless of tags on the bag. Don't spend $80 on a Chanel Knock-off - the bag itself probably only cost half that to make.
I had no idea these things were going on. Being a woman, of course I love to get a new purse now and again, but I have no desire for designer bags, so I've never looked into them. I've just been happy with what i find at Walmart (but be careful there too, both Walmart and Target have been taken to court by designers for selling knock-off bags - let's face it, what are the chance you'll find a real FENDI at Walmart?) This being said, I love my Nine West purse that I won at a fundraiser auction for a playgroup I used to be in. I know the bag is authentic. The person who donated it was not a purse dealer and the bag shows no signs of being fake, besides that, Nine West isn't one of the targeted brands that I have seen.
If you are not buying your designer bag from a reputable dealer who's been approved to sell the bags, or the companies store or discount store, than be aware that what you're buying is more than likely an illegal knock-off, or replica, or inspired bag. There is a difference in being inspired by the designer, and pretending it came from the designer by using their trademarked/copyrighted logos. That is against the US law. No ifs, ands, or buts. You will be arrested, your stuff will be taken if you get caught and they'll be a hefty fine. Not only that, but you are hurting our economy, hurting the brand itself, possibly supporting sweat shops and organized crime and possibly even terrorism. Is that what you want? Certainly not something I want to do. I would never feel good about walking around with a fake bag. Whether the person explains to you or not that the bags are fake, it is still illegal for them to sell and for you to buy. It's the same as buying a bootlegged movie from the internet or a street vendor or even the flea market. That is another practice I do not participate in.
If they claim the bag to be inspired by, than the bag should not contain any tags, labels, other of the designers logo - none. A company, let's say, makes a bag that is inspired to look like a Chanel bag; that could be legal because they will not use the Chanel logo anywhere on the bag, and they may in-fact use their own. The design of the bags, unfortunately, may not be subject to copyright laws, however, that brand, that logo, that trademark, is. It could infringe on copyright if that same bag can be mistaken for a real Chanel, regardless if the logo is not on the bag.
A company like this Purse Valley who is selling replicas is not selling legal bags. They say the material is high-quality and all, and the price is higher, but the fact remains, they are making bags than using trademarked logos on the bags to make them look like the real deal when in fact they are not, which they even attest too. That practice is ILLEGAL! It would be like someone taking something I drew on high-quality paper, copying it on cheap paper, mass producing it (all the while I have no knowledge and did not approve) and then selling it with my name on it, no matter what the quality of the product was. These fake designer bags are mass produced in factories and the logos are copied from original and slapped on, but it is not real.
Do the research, educate yourself, know what you're spending your money on and don't support illegal activities no matter how much you want a designer bag without the designer price tag. At $50 -$90 for a fake bag, that is still too much money because they cost a fraction of that to make, and at what expense? Who profits from that?
For more info, visit these sites:
Get Real about fake handbags
International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition
Spotting a Fake
Have you ever been invited to a purse party? Lately I've been getting several invites. From purse's, jewelry, makeup, food to just about anything. There are so many do-it-yourself hosts for various companies and I know a lot of women who've become these consultants. So I know that Avon parties, and MaryKay parites, Silpada, Tastefully Simple, and many others are legal, but what about purse parties? Well, that depends on what they are selling. You need to be very careful about what you are buying. Educate yourself before you buy or get sucked into hosting one of these parties. You don't want to be supporting illegal activities.
So what about these purse parties? Are they legal? Well the short answer is this, No, not if they are selling "designer" handbags, with the companies logo/trademark on the bag or have a tag with that information on it. Designers like Chanel, Luis Vitton, Burberry, Juicy Couture and others are NOT going to have their bags for sale at home parties. If you are invited to one and see these bags have the those designers logos on the bag, do not assume it's the real deal - it isn't in just about all the cases. Unless the person selling is buying directly from the companies or their approved distributors it's not legal. More than likely what you are looking at is a knock-off bag that is not produced in any way by the designers company, but rather likely to be made in China or other places and possible by sweat shop children. How do you know it's fake? Well price and quality are #1 things you can spot. Some bags, I've seen these even in online stores selling copy's or replicas, sell these bags claiming to be high-quality and rather than the $400+ price tag of the real deal, these fakes are sold much, much cheaper. The ones at purse parties seem to go for well under $100 - that is your first clue.
But the bags have the designer logo on it? How can that be if it's fake? This makes it much harder to spot a fake, but logo or not, it's fake if you did not buy it from an approved dealer or the company itself. An approved dealer is not going to be on the street selling, nor will they be in your home, or their home selling. It's going to be a store, and the price is going to be much higher. The quality will be much better. Fake bags don't use the best material or have the best stitching, but a big giveaway is the lining on the inside. If it's not silk, not soft, it's not real regardless of tags on the bag. Don't spend $80 on a Chanel Knock-off - the bag itself probably only cost half that to make.
I had no idea these things were going on. Being a woman, of course I love to get a new purse now and again, but I have no desire for designer bags, so I've never looked into them. I've just been happy with what i find at Walmart (but be careful there too, both Walmart and Target have been taken to court by designers for selling knock-off bags - let's face it, what are the chance you'll find a real FENDI at Walmart?) This being said, I love my Nine West purse that I won at a fundraiser auction for a playgroup I used to be in. I know the bag is authentic. The person who donated it was not a purse dealer and the bag shows no signs of being fake, besides that, Nine West isn't one of the targeted brands that I have seen.
If you are not buying your designer bag from a reputable dealer who's been approved to sell the bags, or the companies store or discount store, than be aware that what you're buying is more than likely an illegal knock-off, or replica, or inspired bag. There is a difference in being inspired by the designer, and pretending it came from the designer by using their trademarked/copyrighted logos. That is against the US law. No ifs, ands, or buts. You will be arrested, your stuff will be taken if you get caught and they'll be a hefty fine. Not only that, but you are hurting our economy, hurting the brand itself, possibly supporting sweat shops and organized crime and possibly even terrorism. Is that what you want? Certainly not something I want to do. I would never feel good about walking around with a fake bag. Whether the person explains to you or not that the bags are fake, it is still illegal for them to sell and for you to buy. It's the same as buying a bootlegged movie from the internet or a street vendor or even the flea market. That is another practice I do not participate in.
If they claim the bag to be inspired by, than the bag should not contain any tags, labels, other of the designers logo - none. A company, let's say, makes a bag that is inspired to look like a Chanel bag; that could be legal because they will not use the Chanel logo anywhere on the bag, and they may in-fact use their own. The design of the bags, unfortunately, may not be subject to copyright laws, however, that brand, that logo, that trademark, is. It could infringe on copyright if that same bag can be mistaken for a real Chanel, regardless if the logo is not on the bag.
A company like this Purse Valley who is selling replicas is not selling legal bags. They say the material is high-quality and all, and the price is higher, but the fact remains, they are making bags than using trademarked logos on the bags to make them look like the real deal when in fact they are not, which they even attest too. That practice is ILLEGAL! It would be like someone taking something I drew on high-quality paper, copying it on cheap paper, mass producing it (all the while I have no knowledge and did not approve) and then selling it with my name on it, no matter what the quality of the product was. These fake designer bags are mass produced in factories and the logos are copied from original and slapped on, but it is not real.
Do the research, educate yourself, know what you're spending your money on and don't support illegal activities no matter how much you want a designer bag without the designer price tag. At $50 -$90 for a fake bag, that is still too much money because they cost a fraction of that to make, and at what expense? Who profits from that?
For more info, visit these sites:
Get Real about fake handbags
International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition
Spotting a Fake
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