Buying designer, from the maker (not designer) in Italy

[woodstock]

A friend of mine has been buying bags directly from the guy who makes handmade bags for Bottega Veneta, in Vicenza - exact same bags but he cannot put their label on it and of course they are a lot cheaper - think 200 dollars sometimes. He showed her his showroom and his next large order from a boutique in NY. He has his own small storefront in Vicenza but puts his own label on them.

Has any done something similar - bought bags from "the source" in Italy but since they are the actual maker for the brand but not "the brand" they cannot label them as such?

and if so, WHERE?

 

[cloud9]

if this is a real deal, id like to know more about it...
but how can you be sure that he's really the one taking orders from those companies? because a lot of sellers just make similar looking bags and pretend that they take orders from the big companies... hence the "i can make the same bag for you without the label on" story.

 

[Ghost]

1000 dollar bag is 200
my 300 dollars Dior pouch will be about 50 dollars
f#$@ all designers

 

[MJCouture]

there are a lot of legitimate craftsmen and factories that do this. basically they use the designers patterns and materials, and the quality is the same but the bag does not have a label and often they will not finish the lining of the bag. a friend of mine who travels to Italy a few times a year has bought a few of these, and personally I don't like the idea of it, but they all look real to me.

 

[leyla m.]

it does exist specially in this area around san remo etc... however MOST of these people claim its from the same factory and even though it looks good, it isnt really from the same factory.. so be warned

 

[ilovepositano]

let's not take it out on designers. trust me, gross margin on fashion sounds exorbitant, but usually net margin is NEGATIVE. so in fact your designer goods are a bargain at full price.

oh, and i second what leyla said about it maybe not coming from the same factory. actually you can get a bottega venetta bag very inexpensively by going to the BV outlet itself south of florence. that way you pay still only a fraction of the price, but know for sure it's real.