Spot a knock-off Coach Bag

It's sometimes difficult to determine a fake Coach bag from the original. But there are ways to scrutinize a bag and know it's the real thing. Below are some keypoints that may be useful when buying from sellers other than shops affiliated with Coach.

The photos used here are mine and guaranteed Authentic Coach Products shipped from USA and was bought from the factory outlets there.

1. Signature Jacquard fabric: Crooked "C" pattern. The tip of the horizontal "C" facing the other "C" should touch(except newer styles) . The pattern can complete from the top and down to the bottom,but most of the time it will be cut-off by the seams.But the pattern is always centralized,it will start in the center of the front panel of the bag same applies to the back panel. The center seam will run straight down through the middle of the CC's, and the pattern should be aligned horizontally and vertically. Also, the pattern should line up on any front or back pockets, so that it looks like there is no break in the pattern.You'll know the pattern is centralized by comparing both ends,the cut-off pattern should look symmetrical.Below are photos of actual Authentic Bags.

2.The Jacquard fabric will have a sheen effect. This makes the color vibrant, fakes will always look dull. The stiching will be sloppy, real ones have dense thread count so there wont be any obvious gaps evident on the "C" pattern. There should be no over-stiching, each stitch should have the same length.

3. Replicas: More replicas are usually made of fabric, as leather is more expensive and therefore all-leather bags are less likely to be fake unless the leather used is of poor quality

4. Authenticity Card: Coach doesn't issue Authenticity cards but a Customer Care Card inserted in the inner pocket.

5. Credo Patch: COACH bags have a "serial number" which is stamped on the inside, on a square patch of leather sewn into the lining. Some of the smaller purses (the "clutch," the "swingpack" and the "mini") do not have a serial number. The serial number typically consists of a series of numbers or a number-and-letter combination. The last 4-5 digits of the serial number indicate the style number of the bag. But COACH bag replicas also have a serial number - but you can determine if its fake if its merely printed on a poor quality leather patch and not stamped.
Although some bags credo patch are printed in ink, the newer lines like the Legacy, but text are still stamped first before adding the gold-colored ink

6. Hardwares: The "COACH" logo should be stamped on most of the metal hardware - except the older "classic favorite" styles. The newer COACH bags do not have the COACH stamp on any of the nickel/brass hardware, such as, the Legacy bags.

7. Zippers: The zipper pull on a real COACH bags is made of leather.The actual zipper mechanism which pulls the two sides of the zipper together should be embossed with the letters "YKK". This is the highest-quality manufacturer of zippers and COACH uses this brand.

8. Lining: All authentic Coach Bags will have a real silk lining usually in bright colors.Note that some classic favourite models might not have a lining at all.

9. Where it's made: Coach Bags from the US are usually from China, so don't be alarmed when you check the Credo and see its "Made in China".

10. Lastly, if you've already made a purchase & in doubt you can always bring your bag to any Coach store and they can verify its authenticity.