Coach Purse Party

Status Over Substance

Fashion mavens agree that even a few choice designer pieces can add flair to your personal style. Coach is a prized collection because of the company’s longstanding dedication to fine leather craftsmanship. The glove-tanned leather is a true trademark of the company.

Nevertheless, many replicas exist. Counterfeiting of designer products is a serious crime, and has a huge impact on a number of different areas:

• The exploitation of child labor
• Increased ancillary crime, such as organized mobs and terrorism
• Magnified prices on the actual designer product

Many popular designers battle these counterfeit practices continually, including Kate Spade and Michael Kors. You have to ask yourself if having a certain logo on your person is worth paying a price greater than what you’d spend on authorized retail.

The Myth of the Coach Purse Party

Frankly, there is no such thing as a Coach purse party. If you see one advertised, pass a vendor on the street, or find Coach purses on a discount website, that is your cue that the item offered is a fake. Even if your new pal in the office states she’s hosting a Coach purse party featuring new products, be aware that all the items will be reproductions, and she might not even know it.

Coach is an international retail company that only sells its merchandise through:

• The company’s store and website
• Department stores
• Authorized factory outlet partners
• Select duty-free locations
• Specialty shops and catalogues

You can spot an authentic Coach bag by the following characteristics:

• The “Cs” are centered, not sideways, upside down, or crooked.
• The leather bags are always leather, even the trim. If it looks like vinyl or “pleather”, it’s a knockoff.
• All hardware on the bag will be stamped, not pressed, and the zipper will have a smooth pull.
• There should be a creed marking on the inside of the bag, either as an embossed leather patch or a stamp on a leather interior. The creed will have the Coach name, a corresponding year and product number, an “X” or an “F” as a distributor’s key, and be in English.
• The stitching is exact and matches the color of the bag. Any loose threads or uneven rows are clues to fake merchandise.
• Care cards, insert tissue, boxes, and even serial numbers can also be reproduced, just like the bag itself, and are not good indicators of authenticity.
• Coach products featured at factory outlets are still in near perfect condition, and will cost upwards of $150-$300 depending on the piece.

Host a Purse Exchange Party

Women who love their Coach bags take extremely good care of the products, and often keep them for many years. It is not uncommon for a Coach aficionado to have 20-30 pieces, including clutches, various types of handbags, cosmetic cases, wallets, even diaper bags.

Because the authentic items retain their value so well, some women hold a purse exchange. This is a fun event to which each attendee brings their collection to show to others.

1. Each piece is recorded on a master list with a description, picture, date of purchase, and owner.
2. Attendees “rent” pieces from each other for a special event or a period of time, usually one-to-two months.
3. A refundable deposit or an exchange of a comparable piece is used as collateral.
4. People who complete exchanges either stay in touch with one another to return items or wait until the next party.

Make the gathering more festive with elegant food and champagne.

This event is a terrific way to have a ladies night out or as a planned activity within another event, such as a tea party. Hosting an exchange is also a clever means by which to maximize your shopping budget, and expand your Coach options until you get that next special piece of your own.

For more information on the hottest trends in handbags, check out LoveToKnow Handbags.