Hi Lavenderice! I did view the charchoal grey pepe myself at the bputique and had a long chat about it with the SA. The display model showed a great deal of darkening even though it was exposed to only indoor lighting. The top and front panels were the most affected. The back, side and bottom panels were minimally affected and the shoulder strap, that had remained in the box, was still in the original grey color.
The darkening was more of a yellowing of the grey that turned it into a brown color... Which, to be honest, was a rather pretty color too. The issue i had with it was that the darkening was occurring unevenly. If it was even, i truly would have been ok with it.
Hope this helps!
Yes, it does help. Thank you! Thank you also for sharing your pics. I will be visiting the G boutique in a couple of weeks. I had my eye on a charcoal pepe there in February. My SA sent me pics last month and it looks browner than I remember it.