Please note that I own the copyright to this guide and it cannot be reproduced or copied without my permission

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GO TO COMMUNITY AND GROUPS AND SEARCH UNDER THE GROUP TITLE ABOVE - LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU

PLEASE READ MY OTHER KAREN MILLEN GUIDE!! 

*** one thing a fab ebayer as pointed out is that she has actually weighed a fake dress against a genuine KM dress, and found that there was a susbstantial difference in weight - this being due to the thin inferior fabric and poor quality silverware(zips, studs & buttons) being used in the copies***

SOME SELLERS BELIEVE THAT BECAUSE THEIR DRESSES ARE MADE FROM A SIMILAR MATERIAL, AT THE SAME CHINESE FACTORY , BY THE SAME CHINESE WORKERS,  THEN THEIR DRESSES ARE GENUINE.

LET ME SAY THIS - IF A SILVER BRACELET IS MADE IN CHINA, OUT OF REAL SILVER, BY THE SAME WORKER IN THE SAME FACTORY AS TIFFANY JEWELLERY,  DOESNT MAKE IT 'GENUINE TIFFANY' DOES IT??  

I am a big fan of Karen Millen clothing  - I sell it, I buy it & I wear it. Therefore this guide is to help people who want to buy genuine & not fake Karen Millen clothing on Ebay.

The fakes are very good copies and unless you often buy from an original Karen Millen Store you may never know you have been duped!

Firstly the obvious, if you cannot get hold of a dress in store as it is a sell out, then a seller who has multiple listings of this dress in many different sizes, may well be selling fakes. Secondly, please do not think that if someone is a powerseller that their items must be genuine - this is not the case. Ebay offer the powerseller symbol to sellers who exceed a certain poundage/number of sales each month and maintaining these sales is the only qualification.

Sellers who are are selling multiple bnwt karen millen dresses are selling with the intention of making a profit and therefore should be registered as a business to ensure that they are paying tax within the uk. many do not register a) to avoid tax and b) to ensure that they do not have to comply with the distance selling regulations and you cannot send the dress back to them. If you spot a seller that looks as if they are running a business but not registered then report them to ebay and they can investigate. If a seller is registered as a business, then they have a legal obligation to take back the dress within a short timeframe( approx 7 days); therefore ignore any terms that state you can only return if something is wrong with it - the law is the law!  

The fake Karen Millen items are of an inferior quality & have subtle differences which are mainly in the labels and tags.

The old style KM tags above are from a fake & and a genuine dress - the tag on the left is the genuine one - you will see that the tag on the right is slightly darker orange.The circle has been printed over part of the blue section, creating an eclipse effect of double inking. The circle is also larger & in a slightly different place. The tag is slightly wider as well..

These differences are very difficult to spot unless next to a genuine tag , more so now the tags are a different colour

The KM tags are black & orange. The orange on the fakes is not as bright ( difficult to see in this photo)! Most tags did not have the price label on and were an indicator of a counterfeit item - However, some garments are now being sold with counterfeit price tags as well. The two tags in the photo above are from a fake and real garment ( the fake being the bottom one) Can you see how the font & sizing of the label is very different. The most obvious thing though is the size of the barcode and the digits beneath! The price is also printed in another font with larger spacing in between letters, and is bigger than that on a genuine item. All you would need to do is to compare to one in the shop and it is very obvious. 

 Next are the black sealed tags that are now on the items - the top tag is the genuine one - you will notice that the real one is smaller and the white ink on the letters is very neat - the fake ones are much more uneven and you will often see the white ink on the side of the tag where it has run. Again a subtle difference

 The clothes labelling is also different with the genuine label on the far left on the white dress - the tags on the fakes are slightly more yellow/cream in colour and the stitchwork is not as subtle - you can often see the colour of the dress coming through the label ( please see the top of the fake label where the black fabric is showing through..

Many sellers remove these labels & say they are to prevent store returns - sometimes it may be to cover up these tell tale signs.

The above photos are of a counterfeit applique graphic stripe dress - note the poorly fitted zip which leaves a small hole at the bottom and doesnt meet the seam, slightly off centre,as well,  to say the least!

The zip was very poor quality and if you look closely towards the top you can see  how small the teeth are as well - again from poor fitting. The back of the dress also shows a hem that doesnt follow a straight line and therefore the stripes failing to meet correctly - POOR QUALITY!

CAN I SAY A BIG THANK YOU TO THE LADY WHO CONTACTED ME TO POINT OUT ALL THIS INFORMATION, AND ENABLING US ALL TO BENEFIT!  

Another sign is when the dress arrives in it's 'original' polythene packing and is very very creased - a sign, perhaps, that it has been packed in a box for some time?? ( on a ship from china??)  Most original KM items can come in a polythene bag if it is a stock & not a shop floor item - but they have normally been pressed/steamed and off the shop floor. Even if a seller carefuly folds a dress when posting, it shouldn't arrive in a permanently creased state when you receive. Sellers are now steaming the dresses in an attempt to cover this up - dont be fooled

Unfortunately there will always be copies as km have started to move a lot of their manufacturing from Europe to China and this is where the vast majority of the worlds clothing is made and therefore an ideal place to reproduce counterfeit goods.

Another guide suggests that KM dont make any items in China - this is untrue - for example SS08 DE118 the yellow/green single shoulder glam dress & SS08 KW101 the purple beaded poncho jumper were both made in China  (I have both and they were bought from the KM store in Leicester)

The most common KM fakes are the butterfly dresses, pink black and cream, also red??? these were never available in km, black/orange bow dress, blue chelsea davey dress ( made in lithuania -  not china), graphic rose print dress. The cream ra-ra embroidered dress DC026 and the black ones are also on the list - the black option was never on sale in any Karen Millen  store and so is definitely a counterfeit dress. 

Remember the black bow dress that davina wore to the big brother final? thats was BB2 in 2001 !! - people are still selling these now as genuine!! come on, sellers and buyers, do you really believe that the dresses have been stored away for 8 years? and now their being sold at a third of the original cost????????? 

Another common one is the black & white bow dress - check your label; if it is made in china it is a copy - these dresses were manufactured in Lithuania!

    The bow dress on the left is the fake! ( but I think thats obvious!!) the finish on the original Karen Millen dress is just superb. 

(Basically we are all suckers for bows butterflies and flowers!! and the counterfeiters know that)

THERE ARE AN INCREASING NUMBER OF KAREN MILLEN SHOES FLOODING THE EBAY MARKET NOW - MANY OF THE COUNTERFEIT SHOES DO NOT COME WITH A KAREN MILLEN BOX AS THE SUPPLIERS CHARGE EXTRA FOR THESE AND FOR THE SHIPPING. HENCE EBAY SELLERS DO NOT BUY THE BOX AS THIS INCREASES THEIR COSTS. 

MANY OF THE NEW 'SHOES' THAT ARE APPEARING ON THE EBAY MARKET ARE SUPPLIED WITH THE OLD BLUE BOXES? ( OR PLAIN WHITE) ? THE NEW COLLECTION SHOES WOULD BE IN THE NEW BLACK BOX, NOT BLUE!

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS/INFORMATION THAT WOULD BENEFIT THIS PAGE RE COUNTERFEIT SHOES PLEASE DONT HESITATE TO EMAIL ME

However there are now many new stock items that have been reproduced including the sell out red or white graphic rose print dress,the body con red/magenta & blue/green dresses, new graphic stripe collection dresses & the new range of sandals.  black or turquoise pussy bow blouse, the black, beige & orange safari dresses, black paradise mamma mia evening gown, green/coral/black mamma mia bow dresses, black & white rose/tulip print big bow, white summer cotton sundress, tropical ruffle print dress, blue ombre tutu tulle dress , the new red and black ribbon organza dresses , white cotton/voile sundress ( not the blue )and watch out for the orange/zebra sandals ,pleated organza dress. oyster & black knotted neckline dress, blue knotted neckline dress, snake print dress, electric blue & hot pink flower corsage sandals .

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL MY ITEMS ARE GENUINE  - SO PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT MY SHOP

PRINCESS'S WARDROBE

OTHER TRUSTED SELLERS OF GENUINE KAREN MILLEN ITEMS ON EBAY: -

BELLE DIVINO,  TIFFANY'S DESIGNER DRESS BOUTIQUE, GLORIOUS & GLAM, CARMEL'S COUTURE( CARAMEL BISCOTTI), YORKSHIRE DRESSER, SHOP-THERAPY- X, MS.MILLEN, MS.CHELSI, Ab-Fabs Designer Boutique! , LIONS FASHION BOUTIQUE, & MEGAN ROSE FASHIONS

P.s. please note that by shopping at SHOP THERAPY- X you are supporting THE CHILDRENS BRAIN TUMOUR RESEARCH CENTRE AT NOTTINGHAM - A VERY  IMPORTANT CAUSE TO TRACEY - THE OWNER OF THIS SHOP, WHOSE SON TOMMY PASSED AWAY 0N 5/3/2007 FROM THIS RARE DISEASE, AGED JUST 3 YRS

If you have any questions at all , then I would be more than happy to help. Also, if you have any other hints/tips on avoiding these fakes, then please let me know so that we can add it to this guide!

P.S. PLEASE VOTE AS HELPFUL!!!- AS THERE WILL BE A LOT OF FAKE KM SELLERS WHO MAY VOTE THIS UNHELPFUL IN ORDER FOR YOU NOT TO SEE IT!!