Multi-million-dollar counterfeit ring run by Hermes STAFF!

[toujours*chic]

Hi TC, I cannot believe this has happened to you as I was under the impression that it has only happened to me in the past. I would love to compare stories. I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same SA I dealt with!

Hi- Yes, it was quite off-putting and distasteful to say the least. It only happened to me one time and I believe the SA was "released" for a series of policy violations. Now I am wondering how common it is? I am a bit shocked to hear someone else had a similar experience. I know some of the scarves I have purchased on ebay from sellers in Japan were employee-owned and from duty frees. I suppose Hermes cannot block former employees from selling their work-issued scarves. But the SA who offered me hers was a current and fully-employed Hermes associate at the time.

 

[India]

I'm surprised Hermes actually gives the scarves to the employees. When I worked at Laura Ashley a million years ago, we were allowed to wear things from "the closet", mdse written out of stock by the store manager. We were to dry clean/launder the item before returning it to the closet. Scarves didn't have to be unless they became soiled. Manager was required to destroy items when they were no longer current.

 

[tillie46]

Multi-million-dollar counterfeit Birkin ring revealed to be run by Hermes STAFF as police bust global knock-off operation

By VICTORIA WELLMAN
PUBLISHED: 15 June 2012



A U.S. court recently ordered 34 websites offering imitation Hermès items to pay the company $100million in compensation.


Wouldn't we all love to know the names of the 34 websites!!!!

 

[audreylita]

The ones that I've seen may look like it but if you put your nose to it, they smell like plastic and is disgusting. While the ones made in Paris may be using real leather and the same craftsmanship, it may not be accessible unless you buy from a reseller shop or some online websites. I will continue to buy from reputable sellers and especially when they can product a receipt.

Sorry to point out the obvious.....This is a note to those of you who have purchased bags from resellers....if you are concerned about the origin of your bags why not just ask for copies or even the actual original receipts? Of course this may be difficult for vintage bags but from what I have read most of the people who are working themselves into a panic a talking about relatively recent purchases, in which case you 'source' should be able to get hold of the original receipt.......if they can not provide you with a receipt, then you can start to panic!
Good Luck!

Seriously, if someone is producing a counterfeit bag, you think they can't fake a piece of paper? Any first grader could do that. Really, any of us here could fake a receipt. When I'm selling any of my bags, if someone asks me for a receipt, I will generally urge them not to buy from me. Their request tells me they are inexperienced and more likely to find other problems.

So far this thread has been through the hysteria phase. We have established that the story is probably credible. So where does that leave us?

• First of all, I would not want to be a reseller of NEW bags at criminal prices. Their merchandise is going to be suspect. They may be sitting on inventory they can't sell even if it is authentic. But it is hard to feel sorry for people who have gamed the system and gouged us.
• Preloved bags before some date should be ok, as long as they are authenticated. I don't know what that date is, but if the above post from luxury-zurich is correct, it would appear these super fakes hit the market in about 2007. Information about the exact time period this fraud was perpetrated will eventually come out.
• Hermes will have a big problem in identifying the fakes from the real if they are made by their own craftmen. (This only refers to when people bring bags in for spa treatment). The workmanship should be the same, but the leather quality might off or the hardware could be tell tale. From what I have read, leather varies from year to year. Since the people doing the spa treatment are human beings, I would expect some errors will be made and some bags will be refused that were bought in a boutique. There could be a flood of people taking their bags in to be spa'd whether they need it or not, just to get the reassurance their bags are authentic.
• Can't you imagine the mandatory continuing education for those who do the spa treatments--"keys to spotting fakes made by your fellow Hermes craftmen." Also can you imagine how betrayed the craftmen must feel to learn that one or more of their own went over to the dark side.
• It may make it harder for people who own authentic bags from this recent period of time that the fraudulent bags were made to re-sell their bags. The same suspicion that attaches to new bags from reseller will attach to any bag from this period (once we know what the time period is). It would seem that acceptance by Hermes for spa treatment would clear this suspicion, so this could become the new ticket to resell a bag.
• Probably additional information will come out about the nature of the counterfeits. They probably did not make every style in every size in every leather. As time goes on, we will learn what the profile is for a "high risk of being a fake" and we will learn to be super careful in transactions that fit the high risk profile.
• Life will go on unchanged for most of us. Buying in the boutique is safe. Buying vintage is probably safe. And as we get more information, we will learn what the high risk bags are and how to handle them.
• And as always, TPF will be the best source of information.

Just my two cents on what I make of this news.

The scary thing is that most resellers of new bags in the U.S. are getting their product from overseas, they are not coming from H stores statewide. These are resellers that everyone has come to expect have legit goods, especially when you consider what they're asking price wise. But now with this, there's really no way of knowing.

As always this falls under the umbrella of buyer beware. I either buy directly from an H store or bring in my newly purchased pre-loved bag in for 'spa' (a quick free authentication). Seriously, these articles are really eye openers.

 

[Valmont]

Below is an article from June 22 about how Chinese customers are fearful that the counterfeit bags made it to H stores in China. Hermes is assuring customers that this is not the case, but it is interesting to see how people are freaking out, doubting the authenticity of bags bought in the store itself!

http://www.morningwhistle.com/html/2012/Company_Industry_0622/212741.html?goback=%2Egde_37396_member_127540953

Bags bought in official outlets are genuine, Hermes assures customers


Hermes SA customers in Shanghai wanting to check whether their handbags are genuine after police in France busted a fake production ring may be out of luck, the Shanghai Daily reported.

French police had dismantled a "sophisticated counterfeit Hermes handbag syndicate," seizing fake products worth $22.7 million and arresting 12 people in Paris and Lyon Last Thursday.

Police suspected many of the counterfeits were sold to China, one of the biggest markets for Hermes products.

Helen Lu, a Hermes China spokeswoman, told the Shanghai Daily on Thursday that Hermes could assure customers that all bags purchased from official outlets were genuine.

However, none of the official outlets on Hermes in Shanghai could offer to check the authenticity of customers' products and staffs were not trained in how to identify genuine products.

"According to our company's regulation, we don't offer authenticity checks in China. And we don't offer checks for bags customers have bought through other channels either," she said.

The official price of a Hermes handbag is higher on the Chinese mainland than it is in other major markets such as Europe and the United States.

"That's why some avoid the official outlets in Shanghai but buy the handbags through online agent stores pledging to get them from overseas stores in places such as Hong Kong where the products are officially less expensive," said an industry insider and regular Hermes customer who asked not to be identified.

Besides Hermes, other luxury brands do not offer the service of checking authenticity in China either. The after-sale servicewas a big problem for these companies. Although Hermes has been in business on the mainland since the early 1990s, there is no customer hotline in operation.

China is expected to overtake Japan this year to become the world's biggest luxury market with sales of $15.5 billion.

 

[Kiss3s]

This article is so sad...Thanks for sharing though, Knowledge is power.