Shopping in NYC--knockoffs
 

Hi: Looking for info on shopping for knockoff handbags, jewelery in downtown Mnhattan. Is Canal Street the place to go? Are these stores open on Sundays? What are hours during the week. Thanks. jb

Canal Street has been mentioned a good bit on this forum as the place to shop for knockoff items. I have not been , but have heard about it for years. It seems there was a discussion on knockoff shopping on this site. Go to New York and type in Knockoff or shopping and you will find answers. There is also many booths and vendors along the sidewalks in New York.

Yes on Canal street, they are opened Sundays, I've never noticed them closed so at least until nightfall, they'll be open.

I had to reply to this ... since I'm carrying a blue croc "Prada" that I bought on the street in NYC in Feb. (for $30) We saw lots of table/street vendors in Times Sq and uptown that had purses - my daughter bought a striped"KS" for $20. The new trend is that the bags on the table are unlabeled... so the vendor can't get arrested. Then when you choose one and pay him, he affixes the label to just that one.... my guy had a pocketful of metal Prada tags that he screwdrivered on!

Hey, there's nothing like supporting illegal operations!

Not only is it illegal, but it funds terrorist activities....

Selling counterfeit merchandise has one real purpose - to steal. They steal someone else's property (the design and the name) they steal from legitimate business (by diverting sales) and they steal from you and I (because they pay no income tax.)

Of course, that pales in comparison to the fact that evidence suggests terrorist groups have used the sale of counterfeit items as a funding source.

Don't believe me - here's the link:

http://fashion.about.com/cs/tipsadvice/a/fakingit.htm

oh here we go again, getting out those soap boxes! I am fairly certain the people who would like to purchase a knock off item know what they are buying. The poster asked where to purchase, they did not ask for a lecture. These 'vendors' have been in NYC for years, and getting high & mighty on a travel forum will not stop their actions. If you don't like what they are doing, simply don't purchase from them. No need to ruin another thread about this type of shopping.

Just be sure to inspect your merchandise. One of the gals on "Sex in the City" bought hers out the trunk of someone's car on one episode only to find out when she got home that the label on her Prada bag was spelled PRADO! The nerve of being ripped off buying a knock off!

Yeah, no one buy $10 phony Louis Vuitton purses and Al-Qaeda will be no more. You should be part of Bush's cabinet.

Jayne - I thought the "PRADO" reference was from the girls "matching" wallets in the movie Serendipity...

tpattrico - Could very well have been; but "Carrie" was the one that bought the bad fake on Sex in the City!

Loki, you missed my point.

Perkins, have fun shopping and good luck bargain hunting!

Boo. Hiss. I used to own some brand names so I'm pretty vehement about their theft. And theft it is -- you buy it and you are an accessory (hah, what a pun!) to the crime.

Actually Loki, to put a real dent in the terrorist's finances people would need to stop buying illegal knockoff handbags and accessories, untaxed cigarettes, and illegal drugs like methamphetamines, ectasy, and heroin.

Of course, it's always someone else and never the person who buys that stuff for themself that enables these people to get money to kill others.

I mean, one little handbag can't hurt can it?

Gee, grantop, I'm sorry that you take umbrage to the fact that some of us are bothered by criminal acts.

the biggest US funding of international terrorists is our "legal" purchases of gas and the fact that we are beholden to certain regimes which preach hatred of america and the west. if you want to stop terrorist funding, the place to start is to stop buying SUVs and raise the miles per gallon standards.

i also don't know that it hurts the brands - i mean if you're buying a $10 knockoff, you probably weren't buying the $300 real thing.

but i do personally consider it stealing if it is a true "knockoff" and wouldn't buy one myself. however, assuming you're an adult you can make that decision for yourself. canal street is the place to go and the shops are open on sunday, not sure how late. you will also see people on the street at times square, 5th avenue, and other tourist spots.

vacationdreamer,
I've been involved with luxury retailers and brands for several years in my professional career.

Don't kid yourself, the knockoffs DO hurt the brand. Remember the luxury German brand MCM. Counterfeiters were sticking their MCM logo on everything from glasses, to bags to cheap nylon hats. Eventually, the name became so ubiquitous that the luxury buyer started to avoid the name because it lost chachet and their business dropped off dramatically. That results in the loss of real jobs, real tax revenues, and real money for investors.

The person who legitimately buys these brand names does so for reasons that have to do with the status it implies and the image it evokes. Is that vain, probably but most of retail is about image and status even if you shop at Wal-Mart. If the brand name starts to lose that image because counterfeiters make the name more widely available then intended, then the targeted buyer of the real product might avoid the brand.

Ryan - yeah, I guess I ignored the idea that over-exposure of the look/name can take away the cachet of the designer. Good point. I'm still not sure what/how much of an effect it actually has on the marketplace.

Perkins, you'll find most of the best knock-off vendors on Canal Street between Mulberry Street and Broadway. If you don't see the brand you want, be sure to ASK. Often the best stuff is kept "in the back."

Enjoy NYC!