Replica Shopping Checklist

Before beginning I would just like to make a few comments about my position on buying replica handbags.  I have been attacked in the past as trying to legitimize the buying and selling of replicas.  Some people have called me a fraud because I use the word replica instead of counterfeit or fake.   Let there be no mistake; whether you call it replica, fake, counterfeit, or any other name, these handbags are imitations of the real designer handbags.  Furthermore, selling of these replica handbags is a violation of the copyright laws that protect the designers who make the original bags.  I believe everyone should be informed and make their own decision when they purchase.  I don’t believe in or condone trying to pass off replica as the real thing. That is flat out fraud. My only goal is to provide valuable information to those who have already made the decision to buy replica handbags.

That having been said, to be completely frank my heart does not bleed for the designers that create the handbags I adore.  I object to the premise that high fashion be reserved only for the super wealthy.  I love fashion and I love handbags but I don’t have a trust fund and a private jet at my disposable so I am forced to scour the world of replica to find items I am looking for. Since I know I am not the only one I hope to share with everyone my experience and invite everyone else who has experience shopping online for replica handbags to share their experience aswell. In this way I hope that as a community we can bind together to fight the rip off artists and scammmers who have stolen so much of our money.

The first step in buying replica online is finding a website you can trust. The 7 items below outline how to evaluate a website and know if you are dealing with a fraudulent site before you buy.

1. Is the overall site layout professional looking?

Professional, easy to navigate, beautiful websites are a HUGE investment of time and money.  They also take a great deal of experience to create.  It therefore stands to reason that one of the best indicators for the credibility and reliability of a website is the site itself.

Lets take a look at http://www.exactbags.com

The design of the website is dry, to say the least, but the layout is very professional.   It’s easy to find what you are looking for and it includes lots of helpful shopping features.  Here are some features which contribute to making this a professional website.

• There is a professional shopping cart system accessed from the top right corner which remembers you, allows you to open an account, keeps track of items you have viewed, provides a wish list option, and has an option for entering a discount code.
• A search option is displayed prominently in the centre.
• Notice the share feature in the top left that allows people to share this page with friends in their social networks.  This site also allows you to sort their selection both by type and by brand.
• The live chat and customer service telephone number are featured prominently
• Products are well displayed, and images are clear and easy to make out.
• The site allows you to sort products according to brand or type.
• Discounts and deals are displayed prominently.
• There is a newsletter.
• It has a developed drop shipping and affiliate program.
• All important information is easily accessible including shipping policy, return policy, guarantee, contact information, site info, and FAQ.

2. Is the English coherent?

One of the best things you can do to protect yourself against fraud is read the website.   Keep in mind that some sites may have a lot of text with apparently little purpose.   This is done to get search engine ranking.  It is not really important how much there is or even how interesting or relevant the text is.  The most important thing to look at is how well written the text is.  Is it coherent, easy to follow, grammatically correct, and written by a native English speaker?  Are there unique descriptions of individual products? Is the text unique to that particular website?
(You can check if the text is stolen by doing a search in Google.  Take an entire sentence from the homepage of the site in question.  Put it in quotation marks in the search bar on Google.  See if any other sites besides the one in question come up in the results.  If there is more than one result it is up to you to decide which site published to content first. )
Maybe it is not very nice to say but most scams are run out of non English speaking countries.  That’s what makes the text of a website so crucial in determining its credibility.  Text that is difficult to follow or confusing is more likely to be misleading.  Trust your instincts and buy from websites with clear and unique content.

3. Is there a reasonable amount of selection?

A good replica handbags site will come to a market location like this and choose only the best items

Your first instinct when you read this question is probably to think the more selection the better the website. But, that instinct is dead wrong.  Although I would not recommend a website with an unreasonably limited selection (since you are likely to end up frustrated when they do not carry what you are looking for), I would equally if not more adamantly avoid recommending a website that has too much selection.  As many of you know I have actually been to China and hunted through the markets for replica handbags.  Simply put, the options are limited.  You cannot get a great replica of every handbag.  Some handbags are made by high quality manufacturers and some are only made by low quality factories.  A site that offers you everything available is not selective about the quality of item that they ship.  Incidentally in China the best replicas are always of Louis Vuitton replica handbags and Chanel replica handbags so a site that has a large Louis Vuitton and Chanel collection and little selection of other designers is likely to be the most concerned about quality.

4. Are they shipping from China?

It makes some people nervous to buy from China but the truth is this is the best way to get the best deal. There are plenty of sites with great, coherent English, customer service that ship from China. They are reliable and since there is no North American/European distributor the same products are cheaper. You can also be assured that they have direct access to all the best replica and don’t have to be dependent on another supplier.

5. Is the return policy specific?

Even scam websites that are only out to take your money will often display a return policy on their website. So, the simple fact that they have one is not enough to determine the credibility of a replica handbags website.  The way to identify return policy that is meant to be used is to evaluate how specific it is.  For an example of a return policy that is meant to be used let’s look at the return policy at http://www.basicreplica.net/returnpolicy.htm .  Here is an example of a return policy that is meant to be used.  It clearly outlines each step in the return procedure.  It also makes clear what the responsibilities of the customer are and what they promise.  There is no sugar coating.  They clearly state that you will have to pay for return shipping.  This may sound bad but the truth is it doesn’t matter where you buy from online you will have to pay for return shipping.  It’s the sites that omit this fact that you should be suspicious of.

6. Can you pay by credit card?

Only buy from replica sites that accept credit card!

Don’t listen to anything anyone tells you, the safest way to shop online is by credit card.  With western union or international money wire you are helpless if the site turns out to be a dud.  Once you have sent the money you will not get it back.  Many people like paypal but even paypal can be unreliable.  If the website account is frozen, emptied, or canceled between the time you purchase and the time you claim a refund you are out of luck.  C.O.D.  (Cash on Delivery) is also prone to problems.  You are forced to pay for the item when it arrives before you are given a chance to inspect it.  That means they could even send you an empty box with nothing inside but foam and you would still end up paying cash for it.

With a credit card you assured of 2 things.  One: if the site turns out to be a scam you can file a complaint with your credit card company and receive a refund.  Another benefit that you may not be aware of is that it demonstrates the reliability of the website.  Getting a merchant account and being able to accept credit cards is not easy.  First of all not just anyone can get a merchant account, and then if you get a merchant account and abuse it will be canceled.  It demonstrates that the site owner invested important time and money in their website and has somehow proven to a bank that they are a legitimate business.

7. Do they have original images of each item in their collection?

Only trust sites that provide 5 or more large, up close images of each and every item they sell.

I saved the most important part for last: Images are important no matter what you buy online but with replica they are the foundation of any purchase made online.   Really the images should be what makes or breaks your purchase.  There are 2 ways to evaluate good images.  First all images should be clear, up close, and large allowing you to get a clear picture of what you are buying.   There should be multiple images of multiple angles of the bag allowing you to identify all the details of the bag.  If the seller does not provide that-my advice is, don’t buy.

Beware though, its common practice in the replica world to steal images.  You could be buying from a website that is showing you images of someone else’s products.   The most obvious way to tell if the pictures are stolen is to look at the watermark.  The watermark on the image should match the site name.  If the watermark does not match the site name you are on the wrong site-Go to the site named in the watermark to get the real merchandise.   Unfortunately it is also possible to remove the watermark so this is not a fool proof method.

Another method for checking if the image is of stolen is to check for uniformity on the website.  That means check other product images.  If the images truly belong to that website than all the images of all the products for that site will be similar.  They will be the same basic size and shape and usually show the same angles.
Every product on the website should have its own set of images (and by set I mean that there should be upwards of 5 images of each product).  Each image should be marked with a watermark for that particular website.   The images should be uniform-meaning the image for different products should be similar (Same background same layout, similar angles, similar image sizes etc…).  Consider a site that steals images is likely stealing from different sources which is something you should be able to tell.

Take this example:

This website Knockoffnamebag.com stole images from this one: http:www.Replicaline.com

Look at this item:

http://www.replicaline.com/Handbag_Lockit_PM_White–2356.html

http://www.knockoffnamebag.com/knockoff-lv-lockit-pm-white-handbag-p-2507.html

The images on Knockoffnamebag.com were stolen from Replicaline.com.

Now take a look at this item

http://www.knockoffnamebag.com/cheap-knockoff-bags-miu-miu-leather-handbag-p-848.html

Notice there are fewer images and the images are of poorer quality.  The reason for this is that Replicaline.com does not sell this item so they were forced to find another source for there images. That’s how you know you are looking at a fraud.

What I have outlined above is just the tip of the iceberg of the information and experience I want to share with you but I need your help. First I need you to ask questions. Sometimes it is hard for someone like me with experience to remember what it was like when I was new to shopping for replica handbags online. Remind me! Ask me your questions, tell me your troubles, believe it or not I really do want to help. And for those of you out there who do have experience for heavens sake share! Don’t leave our sisters out there in the cold! What advice would you give?