Thank you for sharing,
Prada Psycho.
I fully agree with the buy Prada at Prada statement - after being scammed with a wallet online, my first
supposedly Prada purchase - I learned my lesson the hard way. I was thinking back then - "Oh, I'm saving $200+ so I'm being smart". After that happened though - was I really being smart?! I'd say quite the opposite. In the first place, the $200+ savings was not that significant (I fooled myself into thinking it was, since it was around 50% savings on a $400+ wallet) - but the trouble that came after totally negated that (plus some). It's not like I couldn't have just shelled out the additional $200+ - I was just foolish enough to think I was "outsmarting" them by saving on my purchase. The wallet was supposedly new and authentic - plus it was
Amazon, so I thought that was safer than ebay. Sigh. Well, to
Amazon's credit, they removed the seller after I reported them.
After that experience, I just thought to myself how the full price I was paying for the bags - several hundreds, or even a thousand more, than what you could buy it for in some online sites, was really for my peace of mind. I was right - since then, buying in-store (not just Prada - but even my other bags), I have been very secure and happy with my purchases. The only exception to my rule recently has been the older/vintage Prada models - since those are no longer available in-store, I had no choice but to purchase pre-loved online (authenticated, of course).
I am sure for many people here, they can afford the full price - either right away, or with just some time saving. The mentality of "outsmarting" the system by saving some hundreds or more, just might be taking over (as it did me initially) - but I can tell you from experience, it just is not worth it. Besides, I love the experience of walking into a store (Prada or not), checking out the different bags and personally inspecting them, plus seeing how they look on me - then deciding, and walking out the store with my purchase! It's a great feeling - for me, at least.
If you fall under the others who may not be able to easily afford Prada - well, it just might take longer saving to buy in-store - but again, it's so worth it! That will make it even more special
If not, then maybe, just maybe, Prada is not right for you at this time.
Just my 2 cents. I get how people may not feel that way about purchasing in-store, but that's how I keep my sanity and happiness. At the end of the day, NOBODY should be duped into buying something fake. It's just wrong, unfair, and - illegal (for the seller).