Congratulations, you are finally pulling the trigger on a preowned Gucci bag. However, before purchasing it's important to learn how to spot a fake Gucci bag and learn how to authenticate Gucci.
As a designer bag authentication company, we advise first to examine a bag thoroughly to make sure you are being offered an original item because Gucci is among the top three brands that are the most counterfeited.
Our step-by-step guide will help you get the quality product of Italian craftsmanship that you truly deserve. Once you learn how to authenticate a Gucci handbag it will be easier for you to make your luxury accessories collection full of original items.
If you want to learn more about this fabulous Italian brand, check our Ultimate Gucci Bags Guide.
Although it's strictly prohibited to sell counterfeit, some people manage to display low-quality production on the websites and even in offline stores.
Here is our Gucci Bag Authentication Guide with 8 steps you need to take to spot a fake Gucci, and we are going to describe each of them in details:
- Leather and canvas
- Logo
- Hardware
- Stitching
- Interior tag
- Serial number
- Lettering and fonts
- Controllato card
Step 1. Check the Quality of Materials
It's quite hard to distinguish the quality of the materials only by pictures. However, if you planning to order a Gucci handbag from an offline consignment store or a seller in your you have a huge advantage, as you can check the quality of the leather.
The Italian fashion house respects its customers, so every bag is made of high-quality leather or canvas. As you lay your hands on a Gucci leather bag, you would fall in love with its incredible softness. Cheap leather at the closer inspection will look unnatural, because of its machine-made origin.
If the bag you're looking to buy is made of canvas, examine the double G initials on the canvas. In the original version, Gs initials always have rounded edges. Remember that the left G on the authentic logo is facing forward and the right G is upside down.
On fake Gucci bags, you might notice that the famous logo has different sizes and is not aligned. In addition, the spacing between the letters might differ across the canvas.
Note that Gucci have had a variety of canvases and some of them differ from the original GG canvas. For instance, Gucci Plus bags have a 'plus' mark right on the logo.
Step 2. Examine the Logo
For every respectable fashion brand a logo is their heritage, so it's an essential part of the bag or accessory.
The fashion house has recently updated its famous GG logo to an overlapping logo, which you can find on Gucci Marmont bags. No matter what type of Gucci handbag you buy, this logo is always present on the front. Both round G letters look like an unfinished letter O. The logo or the brand name should also be stitched on the dust bag which you get for free to keep your purchase from sunlight, moisture, and dust.
Want more articles on authentication?
LOUIS VUITTON: How Can One Spot a Fake Louis Vuitton Pochette Metis?
Step 3. Examine the Hardware of the Bag
For every designer bag manufacturer it's important to provide high-quality hardware to ensure that a product might be used for decades.
Gucci is no exception. Gucci pays special attention to the hardware, because it is easy to copy the look of the bag and make it seem luxurious but it's almost impossible to replicate all the smallest details of the hardware.
The fashion house engraves its brand name on zipper, locks and other metal parts. Some fake Gucci bags can spotted by the quality of engraving, as it might differ from authentic hardware.
The picture above illustrates the difference between real and fake Gucci hardware. Note that every counterfeit item is different and some of Gucci replicas have copied the hardware pretty well. That is why it's hard to rely just on hardware when authenticating Gucci bags.
Step 4. Pay Attention to the Stitching
Considering the price of a Gucci bag, their raving fans expect flawless stitching. However, stitching is not a reliable factor in terms of differences of real and fake Gucci bags.
Some fake Gucci bags are easily spotted by broken threads and uneven seams. The original item would have perfectly even stitching with threads of the same color as the bag.
It's worth noting that most present day mirror replicas have copied the stitching outstandingly well. So while examining the stitching is still important, note that it's not something set in stone that would give a Gucci replica away.
Step 5. Look for Interior Tag (Heat Stamp)
The internal leather tag is a sure way to spot a fake Gucci bag.
Each Gucci bag has a leather interior tag with the information on both sides.
On the front side, there are three lines of words looking like a heat stamp: the first line is a trademark symbol of circled R, the second line contains brand name GUCCI (uppercase letters) and the third says 'made in Italy' (lowercase letters only).
Note that Gucci's been using this font for years. It's important to compare the shape of every single letter and symbol, as well and some spacing between the letters. Every detail of this stamp matters.
On the other side of the tag there's a number, mostly it comes in two lines of 6 digits in each line. Sometimes the first line of numbers contains dots or dashes between the figures. A poorly cut tag with uneven edges may indicate that you are holding a fake.
Mirror replicas have copied the Gucci heat stamp almost identically
Step 6. Read the Gucci Serial Number
We've already mentioned some facts about serial numbers, let's learn more about them. The simplest thing you can do is to look up your Gucci bag serial number on the Internet to make sure you are buying an original item. There are two lines of numbers, one below the other, each containing 6 digits and never a letter. The first line of numbers indicates the style, the second is the supplier code.
The serial number is stamped only on the backside of the leather patch inside the bag, not on the sides of the bag itself. There's a special shape for all Gucci numbers, so once you learn the font, you would easily spot a faux bag.
Step 7. Carefully Study Lettering and Fonts
To make sure that you are buying an original product, examine carefully every letter of every word. Gucci doesn't change its font from season to season, so it's widely known. It might vary a bit depending on the area of production.
Look at the space between letters and numbers, they are never touching each other. Examine the word GUCCI: sides of letter U on the logo are slightly different in size, the left line forming the letter is wider than the right one. There is also significant space between letters and it's even. Sometimes the last two letters on fakes are close to each other, but that's never a case for original items. All the letters and numbers are clearly imprinted on original bags, so if you have difficulty reading a word, that's clearly a fake.
However, Gucci super fakes have copied the fonts almost identically to the authentic bags, as illustrated ablove. Sometimes the differences are so subtle that only a professional can spot a fake Gucci bag. That's why it's important to authenticate Gucci items before purchasing.
Step 8. Find a Controllato Card
A new genuine Gucci bag always contains controllato card in its package. It is Italian for 'checked'. With a controllato card you can be sure the bag was verified by the manufacturer as a quality piece and inspected after completion.
The card contains three lines - significant GUCCI brand name in capital letters, a small sign 'controllato' below and a row of numbers from 1 to 0 divided from each other by one space. Examining the font of the card is essential too, as it might be counterfeit. The existence of the card doesn't actually mean your bag is a unique product of Italian manufacturer but the absence of it, especially in a new bag, might be a warning sign.
Need To Authenticate a Gucci Bag?
If you're purchasing a Gucci Bamboo bag preloved, it's important to check if it's real or fake.
At Bagaholic, we've had over 10 years of hands-on experience with authentic Gucci items. Our mission is to protect buyers of secondhand designer bags, as we understand how close counterfeiters are getting to copying real Gucci bags.
To order Gucci authentication services, select one of the services below:
