(Pictured above:  Authentic Coach Bag)

Each week we are contacted by various vendors of great fake designer merchandise of every imagineable type. These fakes are very accurate and constantly improving, and spotting a fake becomes very difficult if not impossible. The clerks at the retail stores that sell the authentic item are not necessarily a good source for authentication. They will often identify one of their own authentic items as fake if they know you purchased it off the internet, as they often despise the honest retailer who sells their own merchandise cheaper than they can. We have purchased merchandise at one Burberry Store and taken it to another, told the clerk it was purchased on ebay, and were immediately and inaccurately told by the clerk it was a fake.

Beware of stores who drop-ship. This means that the store never sees or inspects your item for authenticity, but instead simply forwards your order to a third party to ship out your merchandise. The drop-shipper can do business very inexpensively as they never 'own' the merchandise or actually lay out any capital of their own, they simply act as a middle-man in the transaction. Many stores sell to you this way, and you will never know it unless you ask them.

At Discount Designer Label, we travel personally around the country to factory-authorized stores (such as Coach, Burberry, Hugo Boss, Armani, etc), and therefore we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we offer only 100% authentic merchandise. At the store we inspect the item personally for any flaws and purchase the item ourselves. We do not purchase any of our merchandise through mail order, and only buy (and then sell to our customers) merchandise we have first physically inspected. This ensures that every item we sell is authentic.

Doing business this way is a much more labor and capital intensive way of doing business than drop-shipping. It means we often will have only a very limited quantity of each item in stock and may not get that item in ever again (the drop-shipper or seller of knock-offs will often have very large quantities of each item).

In purchasing authentic merchandise personally at each store, the largest quantity we we have typically ever been able to purchase of any one item is 5-10, and is often less, although there are rare exceptions (last year we were able to buy about 2 dozen beautiful pairs of gloves at the Coach Store). Each of our items carries a 7-day full money back refund, less shipping.

Below are some articles which were not written by us, and therefore may contain some grammatical errors, but can be valuable resources for identifying fake merchandise. We hope you find this helpful.

SPOTTING FAKE COACH MERCHANDISE

1. The "C" pattern will be off - except for some patterns, like the "optic" or my new favorite "scarf print," the tip of the "C" facing the other "C" should touch. Also, the C pattern should start in the center and go out. The seams should go straight through the middle of the C, and the pattern should be aligned horizontally and vertically. The best way to tell is to go to the COACH website and look at the real thing, and then compare it to what you're looking at on eBay and see if the pattern is different.

2. Sometimes the "CC" will actually be a "GG" - how much more obvious can you get! And no, this does not mean it's a Gucci! (I'm not as familiar with Gucci products, but obviously if someone is selling you a "COACH" bag which is imprinted with the letter "G" then it's logically fake.)

3. The stitching is sloppy or the pattern is crooked - this is a sure sign because COACH does not make sloppy products!

4. The bag does not look like any other bag you've ever seen - if it looks "sort of" like a bag you've seen but not quite, be careful!

5. Beware of blurry photos or stock photos (a stock photo is one that has been cut-and-pasted from the COACH website) - this does not necessarily mean the bag is fake, but if you see either of these types of photos, I would contact the seller and see if they can send you a photo of the actual item they're selling.

6. Ask the seller to verify that they are offering an original product. If they fail to respond to your request, this may be a sign that they don't want to incriminate themselves. (And unfortunately, just because the seller claims it's authentic does not necessarily mean that it is).

7. Most COACH bags have a serial number stamped on the inside, on a square patch of leather sewn into the lining. Some of the smaller purses (the "clutch" "swingpack" and the "mini") do not have this serial number. However, handbags and totes should all have the serial number patch. The serial number typically consists of a series of numbers or a number-and-letter combination. Beware, some fake COACH bags also have a serial number - so you'll have to look at other aspects of the bag and the seller to determine if it's fake. Note: The last 4-5 digits of the serial number should match the style number of the bag.

8. The "COACH" logo should be stamped on most of the metal fixtures - some of the older "classic" styles do not have the stamp, but most of the newer styles do.

9. Although the zipper pull on a real COACH bag tends to be leather or a series of rings, the actual zipper mechanism which pulls the two sides of the zipper together should be embossed with the letters "YKK". This is the highest-quality manufacturer of zippers and COACH uses this brand. Sometimes it's hard to see, especially on a photo.

10. Most but not all of the silk linings have COACH or CC in the pattern of the fabric of the lining (although I have been told that some silk linings do not have the logo). A good rule of thumb is that if the outside of the bag has the CC pattern, the lining will usually not have any pattern. Also, the classic style bags do not have a lining at all. This is another case where you want to try and compare the real thing to the item being offered for sale on eBay.

11. I've been asked this question often - if it says "Made in China" does that mean it's fake? The answer is no - COACH does make some bags in China. However, Coach does NOT make bags in Korea - so if you see a "Made in Korea" tag then you'll know it's fake.

12. I've received a lot of questions about bags purchased on Overstock. They have an "auction" section similar to eBay, as does MSN and Yahoo. I would use the same caution in purchasing anything from these auctions.

ARMANI

There are a lot of Armani fakes listed on a daily basis and I wanted to create guides to help fellow eBayers from getting duped. Here is a breakdown the various lines for Giorgio Armani: A/X Armani Exchange Armani Jeans Mani (Sportswear line) Mani (Suits, dress shirts) Emporio Armani Armani Collezioni Giorgio Armani (Black Label) Giorgio Armani Classico (Blue Label)

I used to find a ton of great deals for Armani ties here on eBay. My how times have changed! Most of the mens Armani ties listed on eBay are fake. The reason there are so many fakes out there is that many people are "label and logo conscious" and desperately want clothing with large logos and famous couture labels. They fail to realize that most high-end/couture designers seldom use large obnoxious logos. With that said, the Asian markets are flooded with counterfeit clothing and accessories with large logos. The logos usually do not look anything like the designer's actual logo. Fake Armani clothing and accessories are flooding eBay to the point that you have to be extremely careful on the items that you bid on. I personally will not buy any Armani ties without it being from a reputable seller that I have previous done business with.

Giorgio Armani ties are featured in the Emporio Armani line, Armani Collezioni line and the Giorgio Armani/Giorgio Armani Classico lines. Occasionally, A/X Armani Exchange has had ties, but they are extremely rare. This guide will concentrate on Emporio Armani, Armani Collezioni and Giorgio Armani/Giorgio Armani Classico.

Emporio Armani: Most Armani fakes incorrectly have the “eagle” logo all over the place. Emporio Armani ties are the only ties from Armani that actually have an eagle logo. These ties are found in the Emporio Armani boutiques. Ties from this line have a thin white label with “Emporio Armani” with the eagle logo in between the “Emporio” and “Armani” and “Made in Italy” in smaller letters underneath. This will be in the middle back of the wide bit of the tie just under the loop. The ties have the eagle logos embroidered into the back in side lining. Below is a photo of an authentic Emporio Armani tie.

Real Emorio Armani tie

Armani Collezioni: This is the most common Armani tie on the market. It is found in department stores such as Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue, Barney’s, Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s as well as Giorgio Armani boutiques. Newer ties have a white label with just “Armani Collezioni” with “Made in Italy” on the right side in small letters vertically on them. This will be in the middle back of the wide bit of the tie just under the loop. The latest also have a “Giorgio Armani” embroidered into the back in side lining. On older ties from the mid 90s to around 2000, the label says “Giorgio Armani Cravatte” with “Made in Italy” on the right side vertically and on the backside lining this area has repeated “Giorgio Armani” (no eagle logos), however ties from before this period have smooth linings. Also look for the rectangular “Giorgio Armani” logo on the back of the thinnest part of the tie. On woven ties, this logo is not present. The vintage ties from before the mid 90s have a thin white label with “Giorgio Armani” and “Made in Italy” underneath. There's a photo posted below. No “eagle” logos and no embroidery on the backside lining. The lining is just a plain solid color. On the reverse side of the thin portion of the tie toward the bottom, there is a black label that says in gold lettering,"100% Pure Silk-100% Soie" and "Dry Clean Only Nettoyage A Sec."

There are numerous sellers who are trying to con you with their “Armani” tie inventory. There are two sellers out of the U.K., who just simply show pictures of the tie knot on a white or gray back ground (with no shirt or jacket shown). It appears one seller was suspended and is now back under a new ID and the other seller has continued to sell cheap ties as Armani ties. These sellers never show photos of the Armani label on the tie. These ties are poor quality fakes, calling them "bootleg" would be a compliment. I have noticed in this seller’s feedback, several buyers have noted that the fabric was cheap and it was an obvious fake. One feedback recent posting stated,"Quick delivery but cheap rubbish, stiching not even secure on the tie." However, some eBayers keep bidding on these. I'm not sure if they are just hoping these bootleg ties are real or they don't mind buying bootleg items.

There is an American seller who has the same photo lay out style as that UK seller. The difference is that the American seller uses a shirt and jacket and their ties are real Armani. Avoid the UK seller's fakes at all costs. I have provided a photo of one of the UK seller's typical bootleg ties he/she sells. Another seller shows photos of “Armani” ties with orange tie hangers with eagle logos on the top. Armani does not present ties with hangers on them. I have provided a photo of these fakes for you. Avoid these also. Remember, this line of Armani ties do not feature “eagle” logos on the ties. If you see the eagle logo, it is a fake, don’t waste your money.

Giorgio Armani and Giorgio Armani Classico: This line is commonly referred to as Giorgio Armani Black Label and is found in Giorgio Armani boutiques in New York, Beverly Hills, South Coast Plaza, Houston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Atlanta, San Francisco, Manhasett, Palm Beach, Bal Harbour and Boston. You can also find it in select Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Barney’s and Bergdorf Goodman stores. Newer ties have a square black label (blue with the Classico line) with just “Giorgio Armani” and “Made in Italy” in small letters below. This will be in the middle back of the wide bit of the tie just under the loop or occasionally at the base of the back at 45 degrees. The latest also have a “Giorgio Armani” embroidered into the back inside lining. On older ties from about five years ago the square black label says “Giorgio Armani” and “A Milano – Borgonuovo 21” in smaller letters underneath. The vintage Black label ties from before the year 2000 have a thin rectangular black label with “Giorgio Armani” and “A Milano – Borgonuovo 21” underneath. Remember again, no “eagle” logos on this line of ties. A tie package or envelope that the tie is sold in an Armani boutique will be a pale gray with “Giorgio Armani” on the front middle.

I hope this guide helps you to make informed buying decisions online. I get so angry when I see a seller of fake Armani merchandise and when I see an inexperienced buyer actually buy it. Some people are so into labels that they just want "an Armani" piece badly and don't care that they are buying a fake and others are duped unknowingly. However, the quality and craftsmanship of these counterfeit are obvious and you'll be upset once you receive that "awesome brand new Armani tie for $10".

BURBERRY

Burberry is one of the highest-quality clothing products in the world in it's authentic form, and one of the most copied. Look for quality of stitching, materials, and especially the quantity a seller has available. Smaller retailers of authentic Burberry merchandise may have a very good selection to choose from, however their inventory of each item and sizes will often be quite limited. If you're retailer seems to have an endless supply of each item, proceed with great caution.