Did you know that shoes are the most counterfeited item in the world? With the e-commerce boom, the genuine footwear market is enjoying the sweet taste of success. But with success, comes a rapid response from counterfeiters responding by rolling out large quantities of imitation products. As you can imagine, the luxury footwear industry has experienced immense damage as a consequence of counterfeits.
For those of you looking to invest in a pair of expensive designer heels from a reseller but are doubting their authenticity, we've listed a few tips that could help you learn how to spot fake designer heels and avoiding paying for something that is not worth it.
Think: Is the price too good to be true?
When something looks too good to be true, it often is. If the designer shoes that you have your eye on retail between £750 and £1000 but are being sold with a fabulous offer of 50% off or more, they're likely to be unauthentic. How much you would resell an unworn pair of designer shoes for? Is it the amount you are seeing? If it's way off, AVOID!
Consider: The quality of the heels
Some fake heels can be made of real materials as opposed to, for example, faux leather. The trick to spot a fake in this scenario is to examine the quality of the heels. Low-quality leather is rougher and harder to work with which leads to crooked seams and odd-looking wrinkles that shouldn’t be there.
If you're shopping online it can be even more difficult to determine the quality of the heels as there is always a chance that the photos have been stolen and then photoshopped. You’ll need to carefully study authentic ones and ask for as many detailed photos of the actual item so you could make a comparison. If you're looking at a pair in an unusual style or colour, they could be fake. Enlarge the photos and inspect them carefully!
Ask: Will the original receipt and/or tags accompany the heels?
It could be a red flag if the designer heels that you want do not come with the original receipt and/or tags. Think about it... in-store designer shoe repairs don’t come cheap so why would you get rid of a receipt that might help you get some discount on repairs? Ask the seller to send a photo of a receipt with a barcode and price. To confirm the authenticity of the shoebox you could ask to see the little black and white photo on the box featuring the heels in question.
If you've got a clever tip that could prevent others from buying a fake pair of designer heels that we've missed, please share it with our readers in the comments below.
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