Eek..looked at LV on ebay..rant

[merika]

Just typed in "Louis Vuitton". And up came pages and pages of "Louis Vuitton" (note the quotes, please) all selling for $58.00

I was looking because someone mentioned that sometimes one can find good used bags there. But this is just..atrocious . What is ebay doing?

 

[karman]

If you type "Louis Vuitton" there will be of course tons of fakes...
eBay is a GREAT place to find used LV, I've had some great deals on eBay and all my bags are authentic.
You just need to know who you're buying from and do your homework before you committ to purchasing!

 

[whistlerchic]

Yeesh. This is why I find ebay so scary. Like, how do you navigate those waters? Who's got the time? Hats off to you, Karman, you've saved yourself a pile of dough, and I've seen pix of your stuff - it's awesome, and so are you!

I just can't go there.

 

[elle]

It actually doesn't take a lot of time if you're a seasoned LV collector and know what to look for. Only those who are willing to learn and take advice from others should attempt to buy off ebay

 

[karman]

Yeesh. This is why I find ebay so scary. Like, how do you navigate those waters? Who's got the time? Hats off to you, Karman, you've saved yourself a pile of dough, and I've seen pix of your stuff - it's awesome, and so are you!

I just can't go there.

Trust me, I knew NOTHING about LV when I first started buying off eBay...my first eBay I kinda just bought...luckily the seller was an MPRS, and I did do a little research on those sellers before, so of course I got a real LV.
This forum teaches you a LOT of stuff. I can now authenticate items by myself but of course I occasionally still need to expertise of fellow PFers like John, Addy and Lee.
Similar to what elle said, if you're a big LV fan, after seeing enough LV bags, you start realizing what you need to look for and sometimes bags just look wrong to you right away...

 

[merika]

^^I understand. But isn't ebay supposed to have some sort of policing against this sort of thing? A few fakes I can understand, the kind of fake that takes some investigating to detect. How does ebay allow such listings? I also thought that LV had some policing of its own?

 

[twiggers]

Another thing I do is narrow down my search to a specific bag...i.e. "Vuitton Graffiti" or "Vuitton Epi Speedy" , etc.

 

[Miyoshi637]

You can get great deals on ebay! I got a indigo vernis cles for $150, CB papillon for $525, Pearle vernis cles for $120. You just have to know what you're looking for on ebay

 

[karman]

^^I understand. But isn't ebay supposed to have some sort of policing against this sort of thing? A few fakes I can understand, the kind of fake that takes some investigating to detect. How does ebay allow such listings? I also thought that LV had some policing of its own?

Keep in mind eBay has millions of listins...they can't keep an eye on every single listing that goes up on the site...that would require tons of time, tons of employees, and tons of money. Besides, eBay employees are not LV experts, like the buyers, they'd probably assume some of the fakes are in fact authentic LVs. That is why the buyer has to be super careful...it's not 100% eBay's responsibility, a large portion is on the buyer's side too!

 

[lv-lover]

I know...sooo many fakes these days. ebay is trying to fight back read about it here:
eBay Rolls out Major Initiative to Fight Counterfeits

 

[DamierLover]

Ebay can be a great resource or it can be a pit. I've had good luck on Ebay and I've had bad luck on ebay (1k loss). The scammers and crooks are much more prevalent now than ever. Is it worth it? I dunno...how money is your time worth is the question?

 

[alvie223]

thats why i gave up even on trying on ebay a long, long time ago

 

[siworae]

It actually doesn't take a lot of time if you're a seasoned LV collector and know what to look for. Only those who are willing to learn and take advice from others should attempt to buy off ebay

totally agree!

like Karman, i also did not know a thing about authenticating LV at first... and it is discouraging to look on ebay when you're not sure. gradually, i learned so much after joining this forum and looking carefully at the details on authentic and fake bags. when in doubt, i always ask for more opinions here... we have quite a few wonderful experts that are of great help and have a good eye for the smallest details. i've scored some great deals on ebay, even on brand new pieces.