Montsouris BB—did I buy a defective bag?

[bunnyd]

Hello! I recently purchased my first LV bag so I am a bit new to this. However, I did some research AFTER I bought the bag in store and noticed a few things that bothered me.

First, the “Louis Vuitton Paris” text is barely legible, I compared it to a picture of one selling on Fashionphile and the text seems to be very clear. Is this normal?

My bag:


Fashionphile bag:


And, the “made in France” text on mine also looks like it is coming off. Don’t know if this is normal either...but when I’m looking into the bag I can barely tell if it says “made in France” because the text is so faint.

My bag:


Fashionphile bag:


So should I exchange this bag for a different one? Or am I just being picky? For the hefty price tag, I want it to be perfect in every way and I don’t know if it is Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[cielopark]

If you are not happy and its bothering you, better exchange it while you can. Thats a hefty price for a backpack indeed. If it were me i will find the bag that makes me happy or contented especially when i pay a lot.

 

[daisy913]

Your bag isn't defective in any shape, way, or form. How do faint LV markings affect your bag's usability? Defective suggests a critical quality issue that affects you and how you use the item. You are free to say you are unhappy with the quality of stamping and pressing, but by no means is your bag defective.

Lots of people here post and ask if their LV is defective, when their issues are purely cosmetic and a matter of opinion to like or dislike. I'm tired of seeing "defective" used over and over again. It leaves a very bad impression on LV. This is nothing against you at all, but more of I want people to read this and to stop calling bags defective when they aren't.

Anyway, your bag is perfectly fine and normal. The stamps and pressings for labels are done by hand. The final result varies person to person, item to item. When it comes to leather, if you want the imprint to stay on as long as possible, you pick the deepest press. Some people prefer a softer press, and that's why shallower labels exist. From what I've noticed, deeper presses tend to coincide with stiffer, flatter, and more-matte leather pieces. Shallower presses tend to be seen on softer, suppler, and more satiny leathers. It's really up to you to choose which look and leather you like more.

The heat stamp label is also up to you to decide. I have pieces with fainter heat stamps, but I've never noticed them fade. I'm not hard on my bags, so that could be part of it too. Some people love it when things aren't perfect, because it's evidence of being made by a human. Have you ever seen how handmade goods carry a label along the lines of, "Due to the nature of handmade products, these goods will have natural/cosmetic inconsistencies, but in no way do they compromise the product's usability or quality?" LV really needs to have that disclaimer in their stores and on online.

Feel free to exchange the bag for another piece. You shouldn't be given a hard time if it's in the return/exchange window.

 

[happywife18]

Probably Fashionphile has better camera lighting than what you used.

 

[bunnyd]

Your bag isn't defective in any shape, way, or form. How do faint LV markings affect your bag's usability? Defective suggests a critical quality issue that affects you and how you use the item. You are free to say you are unhappy with the quality of stamping and pressing, but by no means is your bag defective.

Lots of people here post and ask if their LV is defective, when their issues are purely cosmetic and a matter of opinion to like or dislike. I'm tired of seeing "defective" used over and over again. It leaves a very bad impression on LV. This is nothing against you at all, but more of I want people to read this and to stop calling bags defective when they aren't.

Anyway, your bag is perfectly fine and normal. The stamps and pressings for labels are done by hand. The final result varies person to person, item to item. When it comes to leather, if you want the imprint to stay on as long as possible, you pick the deepest press. Some people prefer a softer press, and that's why shallower labels exist. From what I've noticed, deeper presses tend to coincide with stiffer, flatter, and more-matte leather pieces. Shallower presses tend to be seen on softer, suppler, and more satiny leathers. It's really up to you to choose which look and leather you like more.

The heat stamp label is also up to you to decide. I have pieces with fainter heat stamps, but I've never noticed them fade. I'm not hard on my bags, so that could be part of it too. Some people love it when things aren't perfect, because it's evidence of being made by a human. Have you ever seen how handmade goods carry a label along the lines of, "Due to the nature of handmade products, these goods will have natural/cosmetic inconsistencies, but in no way do they compromise the product's usability or quality?" LV really needs to have that disclaimer in their stores and on online.

Feel free to exchange the bag for another piece. You shouldn't be given a hard time if it's in the return/exchange window.

These are all great points and I appreciate the time you took to answer! I actually did not notice any of these things until I watched a YouTube video of a woman who bought this saying that the hot stamp was very faint and said that due to that it may fade over time, and people may think it’s fake, for example if you needed a repair they may think it’s fake which could cause problems down the road?? (her words) She mentioned this was “defective” and that she needed to exchange it and several people in the comments said “so many people are doing defective unboxings! Shame on LV” etc etc, so this definitely left a negative impression on me. However, I definitely agree with the points you made and realize now this isn’t a defect. Again I’m new to LV so I don’t really know much about any of these things haha. Just wasn’t sure if this was normal since a few pictures I saw of it had very clear stamping.

I don’t think it was the lighting either, the pictures look exactly the same as in real life. The “PARIS” is not very clear and almost looks just like a blob. The gold foil logo is also pretty faded too even in better lighting. I think I will exchange it if I get the chance though, due to the price.

 

[KathyN115]

I honestly wouldn’t have noticed this myself (I am not overly observant) but seeing it pointed out, I think I would try to exchange it. Just so you are totally happy with your purchase. If you need a repair in the future this won’t matter but if you want to sell it probably won’t help.

 

[snibor]

Since you asked, I think you’re being picky. But it’s your bag and you should be happy. Exchange if you’re not.

 

[daisy913]

These are all great points and I appreciate the time you took to answer! I actually did not notice any of these things until I watched a YouTube video of a woman who bought this saying that the hot stamp was very faint and said that due to that it may fade over time, and people may think it’s fake, for example if you needed a repair they may think it’s fake which could cause problems down the road?? (her words) She mentioned this was “defective” and that she needed to exchange it and several people in the comments said “so many people are doing defective unboxings! Shame on LV” etc etc, so this definitely left a negative impression on me. However, I definitely agree with the points you made and realize now this isn’t a defect. Again I’m new to LV so I don’t really know much about any of these things haha. Just wasn’t sure if this was normal since a few pictures I saw of it had very clear stamping.

I don’t think it was the lighting either, the pictures look exactly the same as in real life. The “PARIS” is not very clear and almost looks just like a blob. The gold foil logo is also pretty faded too even in better lighting. I think I will exchange it if I get the chance though, due to the price.

No worries! I totally understand having doubts about a piece if you are new to a brand. Unfortunately, I think a lot of "experts" on social media hold brands to their expectations, forgetting that other people may like different things. In your case, the lady's advice is also really inaccurate.

If you purchased the bag from LV, LV will have a record of it. It doesn't make sense for them to deny a repair for a bag that their system says you bought. If someone at LV argues your bag is fake and they won't repair it, you can always ask the manager to have your bag sent over to repairs and let them assess it. Repairs has the final say on a piece's authenticity, since they won't repair a fake. The only conditions I can think of where LV won't repair a real bag is if you made non-LV modifications (like fixing stitching yourself, painting the bag, adding a hole on a belt and/or strap), the canvas is in bad shape, or if they no longer make the part that you want to get replaced.

The only reason why hot stamps, perfect alignment, stitching, and leather press are "so important," is because the resale market has made them be important. Date codes can be easily faked, so people look to finer details as a sign of authenticity. In reality though, LV doesn't care about any of the things we fret over. I think it becomes second nature for LV employees to spot a real vs fake. I think of it as being similar to when musicians can tell if something is a live playback recording, or if it's a sound library-generated piece, purely through audio. To my ears, sound libraries are missing the full warmth and body of live instruments. Depending on the composition, you can tell even more easily whether or not something is real vs computer.

Also, be wary of people on social media. I've noticed that some social media people/influencers tend to get a lot of "defective" bags. They return/exchange for a new item too, right after making content with the "defective" bag... and then the process repeats.