Is buying a knock off handbag ever a good idea?

[lighthousekeeping]

I've never bought one but, I'm in Turkey and went into a "Mulberry" shop today. All real leather and all mad in Istanbul. I couldn't tell the difference. A large chocolate Alexa is £150. Yes or no? They had every model imaginable and were beautifully made.

I will listen to you guys.

[PretzelTime]

It's indeed just a bag. One bearing a fake name. Why do you want it? There are other nice bags out there, less expensive one that aren't fake.

[2girls2dogs]

Why is it so important to people to have these status symbols. Mullberry bags are lovely yes, but i couldn't bring myself to be ripped off in such a big way - £900 for a bad? are you having a fucking laugh??? I wouldnt pay £150 for one either - i certainly wouldn't pay it for a fake. I think i would rather go and buy something from an independant artist or bag maker if i had a spare £150 to spend on a bag.

I don't care about the companies such as mulberry etc because they are just plain greedy, but i would care about the welfare of the workers used to make the fake bags. Saying that, can anyone tell me if these expensive brands are made using "fair trade" anyway?

[ilovetermtime]

I bought a fake handbag in China for a tenner. It was a lovely bag but I certainly would never have paid for a real one. I think spending money on designer anything is money down the drain.

[TheCraicDealer]

I wouldn't pay £150 for a fake, not when you could get something genuine like this for slightly more. Conversely, if you got a cheap fake it wouldn't look the part. Buying a fake seems to me to be pretending to be something you're not, because either you can't afford the real deal, or you're not prepared to pay the money for it. And that's before you even start to think about the morals of knowingly buying counterfeit goods.

[Roundandroundthemulberrybush]

I would if I was completely convinced they were an exact copy. The net a porter website shows the bags including the inside and if they matched then yes. I know all about the ethics and child labour but I have done it in the past and would do it again. I have lots of beautiful unbranded bags as well as many genuine designer bags too and stick to my favourite brands and I dont look like I have a fake mulberry or chloe but I wouldn't buy something like a Hermes because they are so far from my style that I would scream fake.

[PretzelTime]

If you know about the child labour, why do you want to support it Round?

[AKissIsNotAContract]

Pretzel: I don't want to support child labour but most shops sell things made using child labour. How do you manage to avoid it?

[PretzelTime]

I try. Try to buy fairtrade and locally made and pre-used. I wouldn't buy something unneccessary like a bag if I knew it was made by children.

[Chopstheduck]

I love nice handbags, but I wouldn't. I'd still KNOW it was a fake and I wouldn't be happy with it. There are fakes I think mostly made in China that are really good quality replicas, but it's still not the same.


I was given a Chloe paddington fake once - way before I got my first proper designer bag. Eventually it fell to bits and all the padding in the straps was odd remants of material! Even though it looked good quality, it still wasn't as good as a designer bag.

[ComradeJing]

I used to own a lot of fake bags it comes with territory of being young and living in China.

However... you can almost always tell that they are fake as they start to wear in odd ways. The "plastic" (the glue that they use to hold straps together - my real Alexa has the same thing on the braiding of the handle) is poor quality and peels off. The handles are usually filled with rope/cord that always becomes visible quite quickly. The leather - if it is real leather - is treated and cheap and doesn't wear well. The lining is usually not right either.

I own real bags now and don't bother buying fakes. They don't make me feel good, they never look as good and they are expensive for what they are. I wouldn't spend 150 quid on buying one off the back of a van in the UK so why would I here?

[lighthousekeeping]

It's real leather alright.

[Silibilimili]

I brought a fake miu miu bag about 8 years ago from Istanbul. It was not for the label. I liked the bag. The leather was real. But I did not pay £150. Can you bargain down? I am still using my bag btw. Still looks great.

[Itsgottabebags]

I own several designer bags including Mulberry and I think they are an investment piece for me. They help perk up an outfit etc.

I have seen several fake Mulberry bags in real life and it's the small details that give them away with the 'good' copies. With some of them its just obvious. The bags look like they are from a market and sticking a 'Mulberry' plaque on doesn't change that and you can spot them easily enough.

OP Mulberry have factory outlets where you can get the real thing for a little cheaper than the rrp, significantly cheaper in some cases.

[hermioneweasley]

I got bulgari jewellery in Istanbul direct from goldsmith who does theirs. Paid a tenth of the price. Looks amazing and I always get complements. If you like the style of the bag and would buy it anyway then go for it.

[lighthousekeeping]

I do like the style of it and it's definatley real leather. And, they make them here anyway?

[expatinscotland]

No way. If I wanted a designer bag I'd save up and buy the real thing.

[ggirl]

I would buy it but not for £150...try to get it cheaper.

[NettOlympicSuperstar]

I wouldn't, but then tbh even if I had a real one I'd still look common as muck so no one would believe a fake was real on me

[MissPerception]

I'm interested in how bags can ever be "investments". What is that all about?

[PretzelTime]

It becomes vintage and then you sell it? IDK either

[MissPerception]

Vintage takes many many years doesn't it?

Why don't people buy handbags because they like them?

[TheCraicDealer]

It's an investment because you buy one pricey handbag at £500 and use it for maybe 10 years, rather than going and buying a new, cheap(er) every 12 months. Granted, it only saves you money if you're in the habit of spending more than £50 on bags at a time which I am. This is the excuse I give my DP anyway!

[AmberNectarine]

Some bags can also be assets as they don't really depreciate in value, but I think this only applied at the top top end of the scale I.e. Hermes and some Chanel...

[greensmoothiegoddess]

I was in Istanbul last Oct and am forever kicking myself now for not buying a fake Mulberry. They were amazing works of art and impossible to distinguish between real and fake.

Apparently, they take apart the real Mulberry and piece it back together then replicate with the fake. The leather is gorgeous. You just can't tell the difference. I spent ages meandering around the bazaar and umming and ahhing and getting the hard sell and walking off. Go for it!