Want to avoid being scammed when buying your favorite sneakers? Here are essential tips to identify whether sneakers are original or fake/replicas:
All points on how to identify whether sneakers are original or not refer to all brands and models, consequently, each brand and model has different characteristics to determine whether it is original or not, and this guide helps you determine the points main ones.
In the current Sneakers market there is a great danger which is counterfeits , there are a large number of people who create stores or pages on social networks that aim to take advantage of the consumer's lack of knowledge, as it could be due to lack of attention or lack of information from the consumer.
In our case, AVP Kicks, we are a store with 4 years of experience and with more than 2500 sales to both customers and several well-known Streetwear stores in Portugal. All the products we sell are 100% original and authentic as they come from the brand itself, such as Nike and Adidas.
There are numerous factors on how to determine whether the sneakers you are looking to buy are original or not. One of them is the store or page itself, but in this topic we will explain it further below.
Firstly, if you already have the Sneakers and have doubts whether they are original or not, in short we advise you to:
- Check Box
- In the original sneaker boxes, they are of high quality and have detailed labels;
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- The color of the case and logos;
- Absence of a “YDM” seal or sticker (usually there is, but not all boxes have one);
- It must contain stripes embedded in the sticker itself;
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Examine the Details
- Stitching and materials: all original pairs have an impeccable finish and quality, rigid materials. In fake pairs, the quality of the material is cheap and with incorrect and soft materials;
- Logos must be perfectly positioned and well defined. Fake pairs often have design flaws (size, font or positioning);
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- Format and consistency
- On all fake pairs the stitching is sloppy, uneven or inconsistent;
- The color is wrong in the stitching line, the general shape of the shoe is strange and does not look normal where the toe cap is incorrect (too square or narrow);
- The collar part or the heel is deformed;
- The font and symbols are irregular;
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- The sole inside and outside
- In fake pairs, the insoles are poorly glued or easily removable;
- Logos or texts are incorrect on the insoles;
- Inaccurate color or pattern on the sole;
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- Size label
- In false pairs, the text contains a printing error or incorrect font;
- Inaccurate production date;
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- The Smell
- All original pairs have a characteristic and normal smell of a leather pair.
- In fake pairs the smell is strong and contains a strange chemical smell (authentic sneakers do not have a strong chemical smell).
- Other details
- In fake pairs, the quality of the laces is low and there are errors in the color, length or material of the laces.
- On original and authentic Nike pairs that have extra laces, the hole in the plastic bag is always at the top of the opening line. If the hole is below the opening line, it is most likely fake.
There are many other crucial and small details that help identify a fake pair and it will depend from brand to brand and model to model. It is also recommended to use this list when comparing with a known authentic pair to identify differences more efficiently.
If you haven't purchased the sneakers yet or have them in your possession, how do you know if the pair is original or not if it's online?
Now it's the part of the analysis that is very important to know if any store or page is selling fake or original products.
- Understand what type of products the store/page is selling.
- There are only 2 options :
- Original / Authentic: products from the brand itself;
- Fake / Replicas: products from the illegal counterfeit market;
- If the store you are thinking of purchasing DOES NOT guarantee or inform you that all the products sold are 100% original or authentic, this means that they are selling fake products that are illegal;
- We remember that there is no such thing as “original quality”, “quality equal to the original” and “authentic replica”, all of which mean that they are fake products;
- Pay attention to the price.
- Normally, stores or pages that sell counterfeit products put the price super low (between €70 and €130) or with big discounts and always have all sizes;
- In the case of original sneakers, they are unlikely to be sold at prices well below the market, especially limited or popular models, for example Travis Scott pairs or Air Jordan 4 etc;
- 100% original and authentic sneakers compared to fakes.
- All original and authentic Sneakers contain and maintain market value, and if you later intend to sell the Sneakers, whether new or used, they have value and you can still receive money for them;
- In the case of fake or replica sneakers, it will not be possible to receive any money because in addition to not being original, if it is used it will be worse, as no one intends to buy a fake pair with the poor quality that fake pairs have;
- Check if you can trust the store/page.
- Ensure that the store has genuine reviews and feedback;
- Take into account whether there is someone who shows and presents their face to the store. Normally in stores that sell fake sneakers, there is no one showing their face, as they know that it is illegal to sell fake sneakers and they should not expose themselves;
- Another detail is that sometimes, stores that sell fake products only follow verified accounts such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Nike, Adidas and others known worldwide, the reason for this will probably be to try to appear and demonstrate that these stores that sell fakes are trustworthy;
- Ask the store for confirmation.
- To be more certain that you are purchasing 100% original or authentic Sneakers, you can ask the store to send real photos to make sure it is original;
- It is also advisable to check the store's website to see if it mentions the authenticity of the sneakers/products or even ask directly;
If you want, you can buy in our store, AVP Kicks , where we only sell 100% original and authentic products, coming from the brand itself.
Finally, we want and intend to pass on the information and alert all consumers to be careful when purchasing online, as there are many stores that sell fake products and we have had several customers contact us, saying that they unfortunately purchased without realizing it. that the sneakers were counterfeit and they ended up being scammed and losing their money.
If you want a more detailed and specific analysis, we recommend checking this article .
We hope we have helped you in some way so you can buy your Sneakers with confidence and 100% original, if you have any other questions you can contact us.
by the AVP Kicks team;
