smitty2003

I am going to NYC this weekend and my gf wants to go to an outdoor market where designer inspired purses are sold. In particular Kate Spade. Any help would be appreciated.

The_Editor

Sounds like he does; isn't that what "inspired" means? Smitty, you want Canal Street. It's pretty sleazy and stinky, but so are ripoff artists.

Gekko

Canal Street is the traditional place to find knock-offs, but the police have cracked down on "counterfeit goods" and they're more difficult to find this summer. Oh, you'll see the replica handbags, just without the designer label attached. Best days for finding labels are Saturday or Sunday.

The hard-working vendors along Canal are neither sleazy nor stinky, although the fresh seafood can add a pungent aroma to the air.

Best blocks for finding what you're looking for are those between Mulberry and Broadway, particularly on the south side of Canal. Don't be afraid to bargain; the vendors expect it.

Enjoy NYC!

E

I have bought counterfeit bags in the past, but no more. For one thing, no matter how you slice it, you're ripping off the originator of the design. For another, I have heard and read reputable news outlets (NPR, NY Times) report that some of the counterfeit goods vendors are fronts for terrorist organizations, and that the money they make goes to fund terrorism and training camps around the world. It's a black market, and I've sworn off it. (Sorry for the sermon...)It will be very, very easy for you to find Kate Spade knockoffs, they're everywhere in Manhattan. But I wish you and gf would reconsider.

Gekko

Jeez I was waiting for the lecture.
Fronts for terrorist organizations? Please. The Canal Street vendors I have spoken to are predominantly legal immigrants who live in one room apartments with their spouses and children. They work 12-16 hours per day, 7 days a week.

Stealing from the designer? A study I read in The Economist indicated that 90+% of the people who purchase counterfeit handbags would not buy the original. People with the bucks to buy Gucci, Prada etc don't shop on Canal.

Plus, what about the free advertising? Presumably the people (many tourists) who purchase the bags take them back to their homes where all kinds of people are exposed to the designer label. How much is that worth to the originator?

"Imitation is the best form of flattery."

And I repeat to smitty2003, the knock-offs have been at times tough to find this summer. At least one vendor on Canal has been padlocked by the NYPD for selling "counterfeit goods."

E

Gekko, where do you draw the line? When you're not busy interviewing all the street vendors in Manhattan, do you swap music files online? Burn cd's for your friends? Think up bogus tax deductions? Fudge on your resume? Have a snack out of the loose candy bin at the grocery store? I'm not attacking you personally--I'm trying to make the point that petty infractions are still infractions, commited, perhaps, by petty people.

E

http://us.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/0...sm.funding.ap/

Terrorists look to fake goods to fund operations, Interpol says
Wednesday, July 16, 2003 Posted: 6:17 PM EDT (2217 GMT)WASHINGTON (AP) -- Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups are counterfeiting everything from designer Kate Spade handbags to DVDs to fund their operations, the head of Interpol told lawmakers Wednesday.

Scarlett

we were down on Canal Street Sunday and while there were huge crowds everywhere, every language was being spoken and it was too damn hot! I noticed that there were plenty of police, on the sidewalks, watching and keeping an eye out but not bothering any of the merchants.

Kate Spade, Prada, Gucci and Dior were the bags that I saw the most of, oh and the pastel LV bags

No, I did not buy one

GoTravel

It has been a long time since I've seen a label on a knock off bag.

You will see those vendors everywhere in Manhattan.

GoTravel

Let me also add, those handbags are poor quality and you would be better off going to Century 21 for a deep discount on the real thing.

Elizabeth

Yes Canal Street is the best known place for these.

Last Sunday I saw guys with bags on the upper east side too. I noted a stand that looked good at 70th Street and Madison Avenue. Near Bloomingdale's, probably on 59th St between Lexington and Park, I saw guys with bags that definitely had little Kate Spade labels on them.

Hope you and your girlfriend have fun shopping for these.

Gekko

Smitty2003, if you don't have the time or inclination to visit Canal Street, you may see men with large "santa" sacks of knock-offs on various corners, particularly around the department stores. It's hit-or-miss, however, and I certainly can't vouch for their character. (Perhaps these are the terrorists E is warning us about!! Run for the hills!!!)


(Thanks for the lesson, E. I suppose you never exceed the speed limit, jaywalk, run a yellow light, stop beyond the restraining line, etc. Even 1 mile over the posted limit is a crime after all! And perhaps you should take a minute to "interview" the hardworking people of New York. You'll find their very nice to speak with. But I'm sure you're time is too precious, what with worrying about all the scofflaws!)

puddy

There is a small outdoor market on Broadway right around Bleeker and Great Jones. This is about a 15 minute walk or so north of Canal if you are in the area and only about 5 minutes or less north of Houston. Houston is the north end of Soho. I haven't been by there in awhile, but last time they had a number of vendors selling bags. Wouldn't make a special trip just to go there, but it sounds like you might be in the area shopping.

mrsbu

You are best on Cana; street on the block near payless and sbaro. They all have labels on the weekend, there are some lovely girls at the end on the left comming from sbaro. A kate spade should cost no more then $22.00 a good LV should be around $40.00 teh pastels are more.
Quality is so-so and yes I own real bags. I gave up spending the big money on LV when I bought a defective Elipse bag and had to fight LV for months to fix it. They told me to learn to live with it ( LV in Westchester Mall , White Plains NY ) then when they finally agreed to fix the 6 month old bag, they kept it for 8 months.
It now sits in my closet instead of being a remembrance of my 39th birthday in paris. It reminds me of snotty clerks at the Mall.
I suggest if you have a real pice of louis bring it and match it to the bags , that way you will be sure you are getting a good copy. Also check to make sure your Kate Spade labels are sewn on and not glued. Some great sopies of the Hermes bags and lot's of Tods. Also you will pay substantially more for the pastel LV.
All of you can flame me if you want but Smitty asked a question and deserves an answer. After shopping head to Due Amici on Mulberry and have a great emal with all the money you saved.

Huddleston

Cnal Street in Chinatown is the ultimate place for fake designer merchandise.

fairfax

Hey, wait a minute! There are also a lot of handbags/watches/sunglasses/etc. at the stalls along Canal Street that ARE "designer-inspired", as Smitty says. The F's for Fendi are really E's. The watches are Rolei's and the sunglasses are some brand X. But they are "designer-inspired" and look a lot like the real thing.

A lot of the bags come without labels, so you can get a Kate Spade-inspired bag without the $300 price tag (which is outrageous for some fabric and plastic). I get bags on Canal Street all of the time - just the ones without the "real" designer names.

Scarlett

It always makes me laugh when I see the angry responses to this type of question. So many people are offended by the idea of buying knock offs, yet I doubt most of these people would dream of spending $500-600. on a purse.
This is just for fun, we should keep it informative and lighten up

Elizabeth

somebody with a sharper eye let me know if this is true: I believe I have seen many LV "confetti" copy bags (the pastel one) that don't have an LV on them, they have some other letters or no logo. I wonder if this is a response to the reported crackdown, as an altered design probably isn't quite as much of a ripoff.

Though -- I am not at all sure that copying a design is illegal. Copying a label I am sure is illegal. Up through the 50s or 60s Orbach's went to Paris and made copies of the runway clothes. Was it required that they change something to stay on the right side of the law? I don't know.

That Strawberry's store has some versions of the LV confetti bag.

Leona

You will find knockoffs on every street corner in New York. They look pretty good, but the people who own the real thing can spot a knockoff.

Bloomingdales often has some genuine Kate Spade bags on sale. Why not try there first?

smileworld

Off 5th Ave. in Castle Rock, Colorado Monday had a lovely display of Kate Spade bags - just off I25, at exit 184, for you folks in mountain country hot to have one. And seeing them on the shelf reminded me of earleir times and the bags my older female friends used to purchase, and whom I thought were tres chic. Neat times.