The Official Canada Goose Authenticity / Legit Check Thread
*PLEASE POST YOUR PICS IN THIS THREAD FOR LEGIT CHECK*
TIP FOR UPLOADING PICS: USE IMAGESHACK ITS EASY AND COPY AND PASTE THE ONE THAT SAYS URL
Hello RFD'ers. Due to the popularity of Canada Goose during the fall/winter season, many of you may find yourself wanting to pick up a CG jacket. Finding a legit one may be a difficult task seeing as there are so many fakes out there. Nobody wants to be a fool, yet year after year I read stories of some chump losing their hard earned dollars on a fake jacket. Hopefully this thread will help make sure that next chump isn't you.
I hope for this to be the most comprehensive and accurate guide to authentic and counterfeit facts.
GOAL
1. Identify if a jacket is legit or fake. Users may post below the pictures of the jackets. Forum members with knowledge will help out.
2. Reduce clutter in Fashion: Apparel section
3. Make aware new trends of Authenticity and security, design and detail. Also awareness of trends with fakes.
HOW TO TELL IF REAL
1. PRICE Other than store membership discounts, you will rarely see see CG go on sale in a store. It sells out every year. Maybe you found someone who bought it and needs to get rid of it.
Just like with real electronics online, a seller would list it for a reasonable price like at 80% of its retail value.
Tip: Watch out for the listing for new on sale for $250 or half price.
2. FUR The number one tell if a Canada Goose coat is real, is the fur. In the history of fake CG jackets coming out of China, they have never used COYOTE FUR. It is simply too expensive and difficult to obtain in China. It is not cost effective for a fake product. CG pride themselves on using top of the line quality materials (*details on faux fur below).
Authentic
Take a look at the entire fur. Does each strand look different? Or is the entire fur uniform and solid in white/cream? If it looks like the pic below chances are it is a fake. Note that there are special edition authentic CG that may use one solid colour (**details on special editions below)
Fur too short? Not all animals are the same. Some grow longer fur, some grow shorter. This is not a way to decipher between authentic or not.
3. TAGS Keep yourself up to date with the latest tags. Ask the seller which year the model is, or when it was bought. Ask them if they still have the tags. CG kept the same tag design for years until 2006/7 or so, when they changed the shape. Since then, it has changed a few times, in size, design, colour, print etc.
One thing that has NOT changed, are the counterfeit tags.
Latest tags as of 2011 Winter
Tags of 2009/10
Real pre 2009 tags
Fake
Counterfeit tags use a large Canadian flag logo in red, "MADE IN CANADA" --> This is bs. 100% sure tell its fake. Notice the difference with above legit tags.
4-A. LOGO CG had an interior logo change a few years back, the same year they changed tag design. In fact, the design used to be an outline of a goose, with head and beak pointing in one direction on a black background. This logo is found on the back of the inner lining, and also on the front left hand bottom pocket. This was changed recently to a circular logo, which is the patch design found on the outside of all CG coats.
Counterfeiters have long used the old logo design on the inner liner and front pocket. Basically they have not updated the counterfeit design, yet.
On an authentic interior black logo, there is a website address that says "www.canada-goose.com". Look carefully at the address. If it says "www.canada.goose" with both words separated by a dot, then it is fake.
4-B. BADGE
Authentic outer badge located on arm. Some coats have badge on left arm, some on right. Pay attention to detail. Authentic badges are high quality and usually do not have loose thread, unless damaged or used.
Tip: If a seller claims the jacket is brand new, yet with the old logo, it is 100% fake. If he claims it is used, bought years back, then it is possible it is authentic.
*edit* this rule may not apply to discontinued models, which could be left over from previous seasons unsold. Some official store sites may sometimes carry discontinued or unsold items with old logo.
5. ELASTIC CUFFS Older authentic models were made of cuffs and elastic on the bottom of the jacket that matched in colour to the jacket's colour. For instance, if the jacket is red, the cuffs were red too. This matching design was changed to pure black elastic in about 2005, maybe even earlier. Again, a lot of fake models will use the older design of uniform colour throughout jacket. Basically, if someone claims the item is brand new, yet has non-black cuffs, it is fake. Period.
Is it possible it is real? Yes, absolutely. If the customer bought it a long time ago, and it is in used condition, and tells you this upfront, then give him the benefit of the doubt, and move on to the other tells in this guide.
6. Chilliwack, Expedition, other?
There are a lot of fakes being sold on ebay or fake sites such as the ones found on http://www.canada-goose.com/counterfeiting . From my experience, the only few faked models out there are the:
Chilliwack - confirmed
Expedition - confirmed
Trillium - confirmed (First sighted October 2011) - MORE INFO ON PAGE 6. I GIVE SOME FURTHER DETAILS ON FAKE TRILLIUMS.
Notice the orange tinge. Notice the fake tag that has slightly different graphic. This is the main fake that is being sold right now. Comes with fake HUGE LOGO BAG to pressure you into thinking its real must be legit.
1. Fake tag. Its smaller than the real tags by 25%. Also the graphic is slightly different from a real tag these days..
2. The fur is fake. They are using fur that is close to coyote but its not.. check the fur its like orange tinge if you notice.
3. Its not shown here, but most fakes now come with a "CG Garment Bag" 100% fake.
Snow mantra - possible
I have yet to see other fake models out there.
Reason why is because the other models do not sell as well. However, I am almost certain we will see other models faked very soon.
*Faux fur, or Rabbit fur, or other alternative furs are used in China counterfeits. However, there was an official faux fur edition Canada Goose sold exclusively at ROOTS for a short period back pre-2005. Faux fur is often uniform in colour, such as the example picture above, pure white or cream colour. It is a bit rough, not as smooth as coyote fur.
**Special Editions - There are several special or limited editions of CG coats, such as the Arctic Fox Edition that featured a pure white, uniform colour fur from Arctic Fox. The fur is soft and smooth, and only a limited production making it an expensive jacket that wont be sold for less than MSRP even if used. Other special editions include Concepts with Wolverine fur and OVO with black fur.
Hope this post helps. Feel free to PM me questions.
TIP FOR UPLOADING PICS: USE IMAGESHACK ITS EASY AND COPY AND PASTE THE ONE THAT SAYS URL
Hello RFD'ers. Due to the popularity of Canada Goose during the fall/winter season, many of you may find yourself wanting to pick up a CG jacket. Finding a legit one may be a difficult task seeing as there are so many fakes out there. Nobody wants to be a fool, yet year after year I read stories of some chump losing their hard earned dollars on a fake jacket. Hopefully this thread will help make sure that next chump isn't you.
I hope for this to be the most comprehensive and accurate guide to authentic and counterfeit facts.
GOAL
1. Identify if a jacket is legit or fake. Users may post below the pictures of the jackets. Forum members with knowledge will help out.
2. Reduce clutter in Fashion: Apparel section
3. Make aware new trends of Authenticity and security, design and detail. Also awareness of trends with fakes.
HOW TO TELL IF REAL
1. PRICE Other than store membership discounts, you will rarely see see CG go on sale in a store. It sells out every year. Maybe you found someone who bought it and needs to get rid of it.
Just like with real electronics online, a seller would list it for a reasonable price like at 80% of its retail value.
Tip: Watch out for the listing for new on sale for $250 or half price.
2. FUR The number one tell if a Canada Goose coat is real, is the fur. In the history of fake CG jackets coming out of China, they have never used COYOTE FUR. It is simply too expensive and difficult to obtain in China. It is not cost effective for a fake product. CG pride themselves on using top of the line quality materials (*details on faux fur below).
Authentic
Take a look at the entire fur. Does each strand look different? Or is the entire fur uniform and solid in white/cream? If it looks like the pic below chances are it is a fake. Note that there are special edition authentic CG that may use one solid colour (**details on special editions below)
Fur too short? Not all animals are the same. Some grow longer fur, some grow shorter. This is not a way to decipher between authentic or not.
3. TAGS Keep yourself up to date with the latest tags. Ask the seller which year the model is, or when it was bought. Ask them if they still have the tags. CG kept the same tag design for years until 2006/7 or so, when they changed the shape. Since then, it has changed a few times, in size, design, colour, print etc.
One thing that has NOT changed, are the counterfeit tags.
Latest tags as of 2011 Winter
Tags of 2009/10
Real pre 2009 tags
Fake
Counterfeit tags use a large Canadian flag logo in red, "MADE IN CANADA" --> This is bs. 100% sure tell its fake. Notice the difference with above legit tags.
4-A. LOGO CG had an interior logo change a few years back, the same year they changed tag design. In fact, the design used to be an outline of a goose, with head and beak pointing in one direction on a black background. This logo is found on the back of the inner lining, and also on the front left hand bottom pocket. This was changed recently to a circular logo, which is the patch design found on the outside of all CG coats.
Counterfeiters have long used the old logo design on the inner liner and front pocket. Basically they have not updated the counterfeit design, yet.
On an authentic interior black logo, there is a website address that says "www.canada-goose.com". Look carefully at the address. If it says "www.canada.goose" with both words separated by a dot, then it is fake.
4-B. BADGE
Authentic outer badge located on arm. Some coats have badge on left arm, some on right. Pay attention to detail. Authentic badges are high quality and usually do not have loose thread, unless damaged or used.
Tip: If a seller claims the jacket is brand new, yet with the old logo, it is 100% fake. If he claims it is used, bought years back, then it is possible it is authentic.
*edit* this rule may not apply to discontinued models, which could be left over from previous seasons unsold. Some official store sites may sometimes carry discontinued or unsold items with old logo.
5. ELASTIC CUFFS Older authentic models were made of cuffs and elastic on the bottom of the jacket that matched in colour to the jacket's colour. For instance, if the jacket is red, the cuffs were red too. This matching design was changed to pure black elastic in about 2005, maybe even earlier. Again, a lot of fake models will use the older design of uniform colour throughout jacket. Basically, if someone claims the item is brand new, yet has non-black cuffs, it is fake. Period.
Is it possible it is real? Yes, absolutely. If the customer bought it a long time ago, and it is in used condition, and tells you this upfront, then give him the benefit of the doubt, and move on to the other tells in this guide.
6. Chilliwack, Expedition, other?
There are a lot of fakes being sold on ebay or fake sites such as the ones found on http://www.canada-goose.com/counterfeiting . From my experience, the only few faked models out there are the:
Chilliwack - confirmed
Expedition - confirmed
Trillium - confirmed (First sighted October 2011) - MORE INFO ON PAGE 6. I GIVE SOME FURTHER DETAILS ON FAKE TRILLIUMS.
Notice the orange tinge. Notice the fake tag that has slightly different graphic. This is the main fake that is being sold right now. Comes with fake HUGE LOGO BAG to pressure you into thinking its real must be legit.
1. Fake tag. Its smaller than the real tags by 25%. Also the graphic is slightly different from a real tag these days..
2. The fur is fake. They are using fur that is close to coyote but its not.. check the fur its like orange tinge if you notice.
3. Its not shown here, but most fakes now come with a "CG Garment Bag" 100% fake.
Snow mantra - possible
I have yet to see other fake models out there.
Reason why is because the other models do not sell as well. However, I am almost certain we will see other models faked very soon.
*Faux fur, or Rabbit fur, or other alternative furs are used in China counterfeits. However, there was an official faux fur edition Canada Goose sold exclusively at ROOTS for a short period back pre-2005. Faux fur is often uniform in colour, such as the example picture above, pure white or cream colour. It is a bit rough, not as smooth as coyote fur.
**Special Editions - There are several special or limited editions of CG coats, such as the Arctic Fox Edition that featured a pure white, uniform colour fur from Arctic Fox. The fur is soft and smooth, and only a limited production making it an expensive jacket that wont be sold for less than MSRP even if used. Other special editions include Concepts with Wolverine fur and OVO with black fur.
Hope this post helps. Feel free to PM me questions.
Last edited by TomRFD on Jan 9th, 2020 1:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: updated title
Reason: updated title