Originally Posted by Hyacinth 
Because apparently sometime somewhere a fakes maker found one of the original Bean Bag keychains or paperweights and thought that was the standard Coach creed - since they didn't speak English they had no idea that Coach purses weren't Bean Bags. They also used the older 3+4 format for the serial number although by that time Coach had probably changed over to the 4+3 version. I'm just amazed they took the trouble to figure out and reproduce the correct overstamping lines. "056-2040" is another number for the Fakes List.
It's easy for a skilled leatherworker to copy a vintage bag, it's been a mainstay of Korea's tourist trade for years. Just like Hong Kong tailors can make a suit in 24 hours, Korean leatherworkers in tiny street stalls or shops can make a knockoff in about the same time and using the same thick leathers the older bags had. It's probably a pretty safe bet that most of the "better" vintage and classic fakes come out of Korea - in fact several major Korean manufacturers were sued by Coach about 15 years ago for blatant trademark violations and actually publicly selling bags with Coach creeds stamped in them.
As for older genuine bags looking new, it depends on the individual bag, doesn't it? Plenty of Coaches may have been used once or twice, saved for a special occasion, or just put in the back of a closet and forgotten. Thirty years ago most people wouldn't buy a very expensive bag every week like some seem to do today - a Coach was an investment, not a fashion statement, and it was meant to last for decades. So how much wear a bag has can't really be used to figure out if something's fake. The Bean Bag Madison Satchel looked like it could be almost as old as a genuine version of the bag, but I've seen plenty of "vintage" fakes that look almost brand new.
And yes, it's a VERY complicated subject. That's one reason I'm so dead set against all those useless Authenticity Guides. There's NO single rule or even a few rules that could ever be used on every single Coach - every one is different and has to be looked at individually. What red flags a vintage bag as fake will be completely different from the warning signs on a recent style. And there's no single one thing that ever proves a Coach is real. Even the process for analyzing a fake can be long and complicated and require advice and opinions from other experts. All those Guide writers who want it to be simple are living in a fantasy world. For instance, the original "Bean Bag" discussion started about 5 years ago at Ebay's Purses forum and led to research and calls to both Coach and LL Bean (LL Bean was wonderfully cooperative and helpful, Coach wasn't. Typical).
Because apparently sometime somewhere a fakes maker found one of the original Bean Bag keychains or paperweights and thought that was the standard Coach creed - since they didn't speak English they had no idea that Coach purses weren't Bean Bags. They also used the older 3+4 format for the serial number although by that time Coach had probably changed over to the 4+3 version. I'm just amazed they took the trouble to figure out and reproduce the correct overstamping lines. "056-2040" is another number for the Fakes List. It's easy for a skilled leatherworker to copy a vintage bag, it's been a mainstay of Korea's tourist trade for years. Just like Hong Kong tailors can make a suit in 24 hours, Korean leatherworkers in tiny street stalls or shops can make a knockoff in about the same time and using the same thick leathers the older bags had. It's probably a pretty safe bet that most of the "better" vintage and classic fakes come out of Korea - in fact several major Korean manufacturers were sued by Coach about 15 years ago for blatant trademark violations and actually publicly selling bags with Coach creeds stamped in them.
As for older genuine bags looking new, it depends on the individual bag, doesn't it? Plenty of Coaches may have been used once or twice, saved for a special occasion, or just put in the back of a closet and forgotten. Thirty years ago most people wouldn't buy a very expensive bag every week like some seem to do today - a Coach was an investment, not a fashion statement, and it was meant to last for decades. So how much wear a bag has can't really be used to figure out if something's fake. The Bean Bag Madison Satchel looked like it could be almost as old as a genuine version of the bag, but I've seen plenty of "vintage" fakes that look almost brand new.
And yes, it's a VERY complicated subject. That's one reason I'm so dead set against all those useless Authenticity Guides. There's NO single rule or even a few rules that could ever be used on every single Coach - every one is different and has to be looked at individually. What red flags a vintage bag as fake will be completely different from the warning signs on a recent style. And there's no single one thing that ever proves a Coach is real. Even the process for analyzing a fake can be long and complicated and require advice and opinions from other experts. All those Guide writers who want it to be simple are living in a fantasy world. For instance, the original "Bean Bag" discussion started about 5 years ago at Ebay's Purses forum and led to research and calls to both Coach and LL Bean (LL Bean was wonderfully cooperative and helpful, Coach wasn't. Typical).
