ABOUT COACH CREEDS
Hopefully this will answer some of the questions that people keep asking over and over. And over. And OVER.
Coach has used MANY different creeds over the years. They've changed sizes, fonts, wording, positioning of the numbers, everything. Just because the creed of another bag doesn't look exactly like the ones in the bags you own
doesn't mean it's fake.
And actually READ the creed before you bid! If the bag is made of Signature fabric and the creed says it's made of genuine cowhide leather, that's NOT a good sign. The materials the bag is made from should match the creed statement, the COUNTRY where the creed says the bag was made should match the plant code in the serial number (ask at the Authenticate This thread for someone to check), the stamping should be even, the stitching should be straight and even and (usually) without double stitching, the words should be spelled correctly, and the punctuation and the spacing between words should follow standard American rules of grammar. If you don't know the basic rules af grammar and punctuation, ask one of us old "bags" at the Authenticate This Coach thread who were actually taught those rules when we went to school.
Before assuming a bag is fake because it has an odd creed, do a little research (which you should be doing anyway before you start to collect
any designer bags) and look through some Ebay listings for older bags to see the different creeds Coach has used over the years. If you still have questions, ask at the Authenticate This Coach thread. And read as many posts in THIS thread as you can to learn some of the basic information you need to have.
MANY SMALLER BAGS DON'T HAVE CREED PATCHES, AND SOME CREED PATCHES IN SMALLER BAGS WON'T HAVE SERIAL NUMBERS.
Smaller bags like Swingpacks, Pouches (usually smaller than 9x6 inches or about 23x15 cm), cosmetic or beauty bags, wristlets, etc., are considered ACCESSORIES, not handbags, and Coach decides whether or not they will have a creed patch or serial number - we have NO idea how and why they decide which gets what, they probably just toss a coin.
If it doesn't have a creed patch or serial number, that doesn't mean that it's fake!
There's a LOT of information on that small leather patch or stamp - that's why we keep telling everyone - DO NOT BID ON A BAG WHERE THERE'S NO CLEAR CLOSE PICTURE OF THE CREED STAMP! Sometimes just two seconds of looking at a creed is enough to tell us that a bag is fake. BUT there's
nothing on a creed that proves a bag is
genuine - not even the serial number or an outlet stamp! Fakes can have correct numbers, and I've seen fake outlet stamps on fake bags.
But remember that bags made before 1994 will NOT have the same kind of serial number as newer ones. If the serial is seven digits that are
all numbers, it's probably from before 1994 and doesn't include the style number or any manufacturing codes. If the serial
begins with a letter of the alphabet, it was made in 1994 or later and includes things like the style number and the year and plant codes. There's more information about serial numbers in an earlier thread:
http://forum.purseblog.com/coach-shopping/answers-to-authenticity-questions-94198-18.html
