Believe me, I've done the research. The black plastic bag guys have the unbranded copies openly on sale but they will get the counterfeits out of the black plastic bags if you look the slightest bit interested. I've been offered both right outside Bloomingdales.

So, GoTravel, just to clarify when you say 'knock-off' you mean the unbranded copies and by 'fake' you mean the branded counterfeits? Those terms are not always used in the same way. In the UK a knock-off can mean something which is stolen. The French class all unbranded copies and branded counterfeits as illegal and will take anyone to court to manufactures and sells either type(or tries to sell them on eBay). In IP law the distinction is not always clear.

Got to say that I found Canal Street bit depressing, all those teens rushing about with their counterfeits in those striped plastic bags screaming with delight. And yes you can pay by credit card in some of the outlets and they do charge you New York sales tax on top!

Ekscrunshy, there's a book I could recommend to explain all the reasons why people buy them - but briefly, they believe that they are getting a huge bargain because the value of the logo exceeds the value of the actual product. Purchasers don't think at the time about intellectual property law, the rights and wrongs of copying, where the profits go or what conditions they are manufactured in (and to be fair lots of legal goods are made by workers in appalling conditions too). It's all about tracking down a bargain; breaking the law is almost part of the fun.

Rentlover, you aren't undercover for the FBI are you? Just crossed my mind.

Off lady, if you purchased a silver jewelry item at Tiffany I would be very surprised if it was not sterling. So I am not sure of your point here. It is pretty easy to tell sterling from some kind of mixed metal or plate. Are you surprised your item tarnished? Does it bear the .925 mark? If it does not, it is not sterling. Did you purchase it at a Tiffany shop?

Sarah, thanks. But I do not get it..why does someone want to carry a GG or LV bag, real or fake?
I do not want to open a can of worms here, but ride the subway in NYC and you will see the tackiest most unfashionable people with those bags dangling from their arms. They are SO out of style here......if you want to splurge on a ridiculously expensive bag, buy a beautiful leather one that you will not see draped on every other arm in town. If you don't want to spend such a crazy amount of money..there are so many options. When I walk or drive along Canal Street, as I did earlier today, I have to laugh at the women lugging these huge black plastic bags....and dangling this plastic ticky tack on their arms....do they think they look stylish//oh mercy me, we need Balenciaga here right now..

If the "silver" became tarnished, as many here have pointed out that all silver does, perhaps it was silver plate, and the plating has come off from wear or overpolishing. (Silver went out of style post-Victorian times because it is difficult to keep shiny. The servants all went off to fight the War to End all Wars and then entered the middle classes, and no one was left to polish it!)

Auntie Sarah, when I say knock off I mean bags that are made to look similar to a Coach or Chloe bag; not a counterfeit. No label, not trying to pass for the real thing.

The plastic bags usually just held more choices that were on the table.

If these guys are selling fakes in Midtown (fake bags with the designer label), I've never seen them.

My point was that I seriously doubt Daisy was sold a counterfeit. The guys selling stuff in Times Square have too much to lose to try and sell fake bags.

Sylvia: I do not think Tiffany sells plate jewelery. And where in the world is silver "out of style?'' Tell that to Elsa Perretti. Maybe you mean that young brides do not buy it as a matter of course anymore. I don't know about that but silver jewelery is certainly not "out of style," and sterling flatware still graces the most elegant table settings. Well, I think I am begining to sound very cranky here..no offense intended. On a more practical note: I need help storing my silver jewelery so it does not tarnish so fast! Someone here suggested sealing them in plastic containers in the drawer? Does that really work?

And still looking for the answer as to why a person would want to dangle one of those cloth or treated leather bags with logo initials stamped all over it, a la LV or, heaven forbid, Coach.

I'm just curious. If the guys in Times Sqauare aren't selling fakes (particularly the guys who sneak up and show you the Rollex's (sic) on their arms), then why do they go running and disappear when a cop comes near? And no, I'm not talking about the guys with tables set up and badges on around their necks.

ekskruncy, of COURSE I'm referring to the silver place settings for the table, often service for 8 or more, that were popular/necessary for brides back in the day. I haven't seen sterling on a bride's wishlist for years, although fine china is still there (seems sterling has been replaced by cappucino makers and hig-end rice cookers). When my SIL got married, she told my MIL to give the silver to me, as she didn't want to be bothered cleaning it.
Style? I wear silver jewelry, and make it, and sell it. (I also have a degree in inorganic chemistry--and I repeat that ALL silver tarnishes, unless it's been coated with some substance to block the reaction between silver and oxygen.)

ANd hasn't this gotten way off topic, which was fakes and knock-offs in NYC?

Neopolitan, I spend quite a bit of time in Manhattan and haven't seen those guys in Times Square in several years.

I do try and stay out of Times Square but my last two priceline rooms were there and I had to do a couple things in Times Square over Marathon weekend. This has been since November.

Actually, in the past few years I've been accosted by the Rollex guys more along Fifth Avenue and near Rockefeller Center than Times Square. But they are still around. I've also seen guys at tables with a special stash of stuff on a special cloth, that for some reason they whip away and hide when the police come by.

GoTravel, which ones haven't you seen in Times Square?

Neo you are correct..that is why some vendors spread their stuff out on a sheet that they can just gather up and dash when their lookout guy sees the cops coming.

Sylvia, since we are already way off the topic here, could you just humor me a bit longer? You have lots of knowledge about sterling so please tell me the best way to store jewelery in a drawer to retard the tarnishing. Is that idea about closed containers posted up above worth pursuing?

Here's another question that I have wondered about: Where do the West African vendors buy those (logo or knockoff or fake, whatever you want to call them) bags? Now THAT would be the place to get a real deal on price!! Chinatown, or maybe the wholesale area in the West 30s??

ekscrunchy, responding to your question about where the "vendors" get their merchandise: According to past reports in the newpapers, there are central (and naturally, secretive) distribution sites, where they all go to pick up their merchandize, being bags, CDs, DVDs or whatever.

Thanks, Howard. I will do some detective work and try to find out where, just to satisfy my own curiosity. If I find out anything, will report back, although I doubt if anyone really cares...must be a slow day here for me!!

I wish Auntiesarah had been around the last two times this topic came up, when I was criticized for saying that fakes suported organized crime and terrorism! Thanks for your insight.

Howard, the guys who come up and show you the fake rolex watches then run out of site.

I have not seen them in Times Square since right after September 11th. In fact, I'm almost positive the last one I saw was January of 2002.

GoTravel, they are definitely still around in good numbers. Walk up Fifth Avenue any day, just for one example.

ekscrunchy, years ago I knew a woman who had a glass doored cabinet full of silver items. She kept a few sticks of camphor in it and it did not tarnish. And I just googled "camphor to prevent silver tarnish" and I guess it's true. You might want to check it out.

Thanks Howard. I guess since I spend most of my time downtown instead of Midtown the past five years or so would account for my declining sightings.

To reduce tarnishing of silver, first limit exposure of the silver to air, and use the special anti-tarnish cloths made for the purpose.