OUR AUTHENTICATION PROCESS
Posted onWe value your trust
One of the key aspects of a luxury consignment business is building trust – there are plenty of superfakes (a.k.a, high-quality replica purses that look nearly identical to the original) in the market, so it often takes a trustworthy expert with a meticulous eye to detect forgeries.
As you already know, we here at Bag Religion share a shamelessly unbridled love for preloved and new luxury goods, and we’re always eager to share that love with you. Our passion has shaped us to be intelligent market leaders in the authentication sector for luxury bags – in fact, we’d go as far as to vouch for this through our Money-Back Authenticity Guarantee, so you can be confident about your investment purchase through us.
Our Authenticity Process
Oh, and we also authenticate every single item that we sell or consign – don’t want any of those superfakes slipping through the system! But it’s safe to say, they never will, not with the many layers of our authenticity check process in place.
Here is where you might be asking, “what is Bag Religion’s 3-Step authenticity check process?”. Well, dear reader, we’ve got you covered below.
1. Photo Authentication
The inspection process begins with a rigorous inspection of all potential product photos by our in-house authenticity specialist. Our specialist looks out for the basic details like the product’s condition (wear and tear marks, scratches, or discolouration); the seller or consignor’s original proof of purchase; material, embellishments, and hardware of a bag in order to get a general idea of the product’s authenticity.
2. In-person Authentication
Photos may divulge some details about the authenticity of the product, but smelling, feeling, and inspecting the item in person is necessary to arrive at a definitive conclusion. Our in-house authenticity specialist follows up on the approved products with a thorough in-person inspection. Here is where the smallest of details can be picked up by our expert, and everything from a handbag’s label, to its stamping, stitching, fabric, workmanship, hardware, and authenticity stamps are examined closely in order to detect discrepancies.
In case of any doubts, we have also partnered with reputable third party authentication companies that offer us additional insight and confirmation on a product.
3. Technology-backed Authentication
Yup, there’s AI involved too. An extra layer of authentication is offered through the use of an Entrupy machine, an artificial intelligence system. How it works is it analyzes material surfaces with up to a 260X magnitude of precision, and then cross references a data bank composed of millions of microscopic images of comparable items to determine a product’s legitimacy. With a built-in network effect supported by Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning technology, the Entrupy authentication system improves it’s accuracy with each scan, its current chances of error stands at 0.1%.
4. Selective Curation
Authenticity is at the core of our business and we have a zero tolerance policy for counterfeit items. If the product’s verification cannot be determined or remains even a little suspicious, we will not sell it and will return the item to its original owner.
Only the products make it through our vetting process and not a single knock-off gets sold on our website. We care a great deal about you guys, our fellow #BagReligionConverts, and we’ll always be transparent with you about the item you’re purchasing.
While we’re on the topic of authenticity, have you ever wondered what the numbers and features seen on your authenticity card even represent? If you have, keep on the lookout for our next blog post where we’ll divulge all the details. Until then, trendsetters!
