It can be a terrible feeling to know that you thought you were getting a great deal on an authentic designer Coach handbag only to wonder if it really is the real thing.  Or you are currently in the market for a Coach and just want some information on how to tell if the item is real or a cleaverly disguised fake. 

To start, there is always a label inside that has a serial number.  Each number is not unique and is printed on a piece of leather that is sewn into the side.  I did mention that the serial number on the inside is not unique right? A fellow eBayer mentioned to me that this number is unique only to it's origin, and it is used repeatedly.

The next thing that needs to be present is a leather tag that says Coach and is hanging outside the purse on a chain similar to the kind that hang dog tags for the miliatary. 

I would tell you what type of fabric to look for, but Coach has so many different designs and types of fabric they are using that I can't begin to tell you what to look for. The most obvious type of fabric for me to spot is the Optic C which a lot of ladies have. I personally own a solid black tote bag that is made of something like nylon.  The fabric will never be sown or cut where the C's are.  You will always see the C's complete when you look at the sewn in stiching.

Lastly, don't be discouraged to find bags that have a tag inside saying made in China. That is where the labor is going. 

I hope that you find this guide useful in your search. Please note that the bag is worth more if it has the hanging tag on the outside I mentioned above, but if you run across one that doesn't and you like it, that is all that matters. And you might be able to purchase one here on eBay.

I have come to realize that this guide isn't very helpful and I wish that I could just delete it. I have a black Coach bag that does not have the tag hanging on it, but rather it has the Coach name on a small metal plate on one side. 

If you think that this guide isn't helpful please let me know what I can do to make it more helpful since that was my goal.

Thanks for taking the time to read my guide.