I'm in need of advice..my authenticated K28 is deemed fake by Paris HQ

[golconda]

Please excuse me for not reading the entire thread. I am sorry for your troubles.

Why did you send the bag to the Spa? The pictures look good and the bag is authentic, so why not just carry it and enjoy it? If you ever want to sell it, the person buying it would have to be familiar with this rare bag and might understand the confusion if you explain the case.

I do not sell my bags, so I would not be worried if I loved the bag.

 

[showgratitude]

Totally agree. If I bought anything preowned/preloved, I won’t take a chance sending it to the spa especially when my only proof of authenticity is the reseller ‘s word and authenticator certificate. Honestly i’d rather Pay the reseller a fee/premium to incur the risk of sending said bag to the spa. This is too stressful even for a reader/observer

Yes, I think that IF H HQs in Paris won’t accept any external authenticator’s opinions and would deem all their opinions as unofficial, then, taking it to the spa is one of the best ways to really know if your item is authentic. Authentic for me means authentic across the board---especially in the eyes of the maker of the item.

 

[MYH]

Please excuse me for not reading the entire thread. I am sorry for your troubles.

Why did you send the bag to the Spa? The pictures look good and the bag is authentic, so why not just carry it and enjoy it? If you ever want to sell it, the person buying it would have to be familiar with this rare bag and might understand the confusion if you explain the case.

I do not sell my bags, so I would not be worried if I loved the bag.

I’m not the OP but I did see a blemish where the leather color has worn off on the flap above the turnlock. Perhaps she wanted it repaired? Also maybe she wanted to get it cleaned cause she bought it from a reseller?

 

[PJW5813]

showgratitude, Hermes has caught on to this as a method of authentication.
This thread is about the unfortunate experience of someone who had done her own due diligence and sincerely believed she was sending a genuine bag for spa.
You only need to read it to see what an unwise route it is to take if you have any doubts about authenticity.

 

[Monsieur Candie]

Thanks for following up QF. No major update yet except one phone call with the After sales personnel today.

She revealed that before she wrote me the email “advising” the bag was not manufactured by Hermès, the bag had already gone through two rounds of examination at Paris HQ. She said it was Hermès’ standard procedure to have a purse in doubt be examined by another artisan.

I tried to make sure that the bag was properly assessed by an artisan, not just anyone from the after sales team. She verbally confirmed that was the case.

After receiving the photos and certificate, and a chat with the store manager, she will organize another round of assessment by Paris HQ. I re-stated the bag’s relative rarity, its proper model name, and emphasized that I would like it to be examined by a senior artisan.

She agreed to help out and I’m back to waiting.

I must admit my heart sank when she said the bag was already examined by more than one person at HQ...

Did you explained in the chat with the store manager, what Kelly mou mean and that the bag actually is made without an extra layer of leather inside. I ask you because they will not tell you why it is deemed fake but craftsman will see the missing extra layer right away ( it is very noticeable) . That is rare variation of Kelly bag and is completely possible craftsman didn't saw such bag and I know some craftsmen are real ignorant in authentication ( crafting the bag not make you a good authenticator). In all small details the bag look authentic and I suppose craftsman call it fake because of the missing extra layer inside. If this information don't reach craftsman is possible they call it fake again. Just to send certificate from bababebi not give you guarantee that information will reach to craftsman.

 

[PJW5813]

It is good to be as pro-active as possible.
However silly it might seem to state the obvious - better to do that first than to find out too late.

 

[doni]

I don’t know if I am alone in this but I am starting to find this thread really surreal... do we really believe that a bag is going to go to three completely clueless people in-house in Hermes who are entrusted by the house to know about authenticity and not be deemed real because it is a Mou? Come on, rare as it was, a Mou is a fairly recent model in Hermes years, it is very sought after and you can currently find replicas in internet being advertised as Mous for 500$... I had a nameless Hermes bag of which I have only myself seen one serviced by Hermes...

I am not saying Hermes hasn’t made a mistake or that it won’t happen that they make one. They are human like everyone else. But being ignorant of their models to this extent... if missing a whole layer was a reason to reject a bag, it wouldn’t have made it to the hands of the artisan in the first place. If he was ignorant of the model, he would have at least wondered why no one in house had blinked an eye at a bag that was obviously not your classic Sellier... A decision that results in the destruction of someone else’s bag is not one that I think Hermes takes lightly. In any case, I hope that it is indeed a mistake on another basis that gets solved as it seems to have happened in the past.

 

[sf_newyorker]

I’ve been following this thread with bated breath - I want to offer the OP the best of luck for a positive outcome as well.

 

[fabuleux]

If a bag is sent to Paris to be authenticated, does Paris really have the right to destroy it? It's still your property, isn't it?

Under French law, they have the right to destroy counterfeit merchandise. In fact, owning a fake bag is illegal in France (but many do like everywhere else in the world). For example, if you are stopped by custom agents at the airport and they assess your bag as fake, they can confiscate it and destroy it.

 

[fabuleux]

Good luck, OP!

 

[A1aGypsy]

I wonder what Hermès deems to fall within the definition of “inauthentic”. Im just trying to find a situation where everyone is right here. The only one I can come up with is that we know sometimes bags go missing at Hermès, before they leave the artisans. I wonder if they would pull a known stole bag as “inauthentic” if it made its way to the spa?

I’m shocked to hear that Hermès has been wrong before at the spa level. I’d love to hear more about that.

 

[milotic55]

I wonder what Hermès deems to fall within the definition of “inauthentic”. Im just trying to find a situation where everyone is right here. The only one I can come up with is that we know sometimes bags go missing at Hermès, before they leave the artisans. I wonder if they would pull a known stole bag as “inauthentic” if it made its way to the spa?

I’m shocked to hear that Hermès has been wrong before at the spa level. I’d love to hear more about that.

Maybe a lot of bag that were sold backdoor by hermes staff could be deemed authentic even if they were? Idk, there is so many stories floating around, no one knows the fact is this policy gives too much power to hermes where they can just do whatever they want with bags that has no proof of purchase. Even with proof of purchase they could just say the bag is still fake if they wanted too

 

[Monsieur Candie]

I don’t know if I am alone in this but I am starting to find this thread really surreal... do we really believe that a bag is going to go to three completely clueless people in-house in Hermes who are entrusted by the house to know about authenticity and not be deemed real because it is a Mou? Come on, rare as it was, a Mou is a fairly recent model in Hermes years, it is very sought after and you can currently find replicas in internet being advertised as Mous for 500$... I had a nameless Hermes bag of which I have only myself seen one serviced by Hermes...

I am not saying Hermes hasn’t made a mistake or that it won’t happen that they make one. They are human like everyone else. But being ignorant of their models to this extent... if missing a whole layer was a reason to reject a bag, it wouldn’t have made it to the hands of the artisan in the first place. If he was ignorant of the model, he would have at least wondered why no one in house had blinked an eye at a bag that was obviously not your classic Sellier... A decision that results in the destruction of someone else’s bag is not one that I think Hermes takes lightly. In any case, I hope that it is indeed a mistake on another basis that gets solved as it seems to have happened in the past.

Do you really think with cheap $500 fake bag ( or expensive ) bought from internet you can full experienced authenticator. You are very far from the truth. Superfakes are from recent years and mostly on croc bags.

 

[doni]

Do you really think with cheap $500 fake bag ( or expensive ) bought from internet you can full experienced authenticator. You are very far from the truth. Superfakes are from recent years and mostly on croc bags.

I didn’t suggest that at all! I meant that the model is well known enough that cheap 500$ réplicas are made of it....

 

[Kendall BC]

I think Hermes needs to explain to OP why they claim the bag is fake, to a certain degree that won't give clues to fakers, but they need to say "why", without the "should be" parts, IYKWIM.
I personally trust 100% the authenticator being used by OP, she's flawless, but I have seen other authenticators for H products (not just bags, also scarves) made mistakes.
OP, please fight for your bag, at least for a full and fair explanation from H. Good luck!