Month: December 2019

This a question that comes quite often: “Is Versace Jeans real Versace?”

My definitive answer is YES, Versace Jeans Brand is Versace. The major difference was the market targeted by the brand. Versace for affluent middle-aged and the Jeans version is focussed on the younger generations at a lower cost. I say “was” because today the Versace Jeans brand is becoming its own Versace designer style.

VJ is what is called a diffusion brand, which is a line of products created by a high-end fashion designer (Versace in this case) that retails at lower prices may be less flashy of the runway fashion.

Big brands use diffusion lines as a part of their strategy of massification of their luxury names. some brands like Dolce & Gabbana who dropped its D&G diffusion line. To be honest it wasn’t done very well. One that went too far is Calvin Klein, selling its diffusion brands like CK and Calvin Klein Underwear in mass chain stores like Walmart didn’t bring lust to his brand.

It helps with cash flow (more sales) and brand recognition as it is sold in department stores (Macy’s, Nordstrom…) and online.  Check out our Versace Jeans collection.

A $1,850 Versace Crossbody

A Crossbody Versace Jeans we sell at $124

Is Versace Jeans Real Versace?

Gianni Versace, like many other luxury brands, has diffusion lines to name a few:

• Armani Exchange, Armani Jeans, Emporio Armani  for Armani
• Cheap & Chic and Love Moschino for Moschino
• CK, CK Jeans, and Calvin Klein Underwear for Calvin Klein
• Just Cavalli, Cavalli Class and Roberto Cavalli Sport for Roberto Cavalli
• MICHAEL by Michael Kors for Michael Kors
• Versus, Versace Collection, and VJ for Versace
• …

A few notes, since January 2019, Versace has been acquired by Michael Kors Holdings, which is now Capri Holding. Capri also owns Jimmy Choo. Since the acquisition, Versace is merging all its diffusion brands into VJ.

Many people claim that all Versace brands are made in Italy, which is totally false. In the article Christina Schnell published, she says that if a Versace product is made in China, it is a blatant fake. She has no idea of what she is trying to talk about 🙂

Many products designed by Donatella Versace and her team including shirt design are manufactured in China, Singapore, and certainly soon in India. Many Versace products are still manufactured in Italy, but it’s getting less and less every year.

The reason? The more successful these brands are, the more output they need, and there is not enough workforce in Italy for all the “Italian” Designers. If you are interested, I highly recommend the article on Gucci on Reference.com about what I call the Gucci scandal.

Gucci factories are in Prato and are held by Chinese businessmen who pay their illegal Chinese workers’ meager wages $3/hour – see the New York Times article.

Two choices, honesty with the origin of the product made in China or made in Italy using illegal underpaid Chinese workers.

As a footnote, Prato near Florence  (Gucci and Prada factories), has the second-largest population of Chinese in Europe, after Paris.

My Small Store keeps track of VJ transparency and its impact on the environment and working condition – as many major brands the lights are not turned 100% on but it’s going there. For example, all Versace plants will be running on renewable energy by 2025, great if though we would prefer to see more details about the complete workforce situation. One Step at the time!

Bottom line, if you buy a Versace Jeans brand from an approved retailer like My Small Store, you are sure you have a real Versace. If you purchase it on the streets of New York China town, you are sure you have a fake one 🙂

I discussed in other posts about the bad and the ugly of buying counterfeit designer brand handbags and apparel. It is not illegal to buy, it is a federal crime to sell or resell. Many got caught buying a fake Gucci bag and realizing the mistake of selling it on eBay, Facebook or Etsy – this is a big mistake. Same as for the “funny ones” who buy a fake handbag, then a real one online and return the fake one for a refund – no refund but a nice police report 🙂

A fun fact did you know that you can buy a Versace condo, rent an apartment, and stay at a hotel designed by the famous designer? The most famous being the Palazzo Versace Dubai (I recommend looking at the pictures)  with prices starting at $180 for a king room, up to $800 for a Grand Suite Creek View. Other locations include parts of China, India, the Philippines, and other countries.

Don’t roll your eyes about Versace luxury residences. All designers have at least one:

• The Gabbana Luxury Apartments South Beach Miami
• The Armani Residences: Sunny Isles, Miami Beach
• The Bulgari Hotel in Milan, Italy
• The Bulgari Hotels & Residences in Knightsbridge, London
• The Yoo Nordelta Residence in Buenos Aires, Argentina – less known in the USA
• The Moschino and Philip Vergeylen apartments in London, England
• The Maison Christian Dior apartments in Paris, France
• The Louis Vuitton apartments in London, England
• etc.

Price-wise? Way above my budget, not even in my dreams. A penthouse at the Versace Culture Village in Dubai,  5 bedrooms costs 12,000,000 AED or over $3,250,000 while a similar condo in Dubai would cost around $750,000 – these are not designed by luxury fashion houses 🙂

Why Versace Jeans?

Look at the price tag and the difference between the two crossbody bags above – $1,850 vs. $124. My lovely wife, who loves designer bags, says, why should I spend $1,850 for a Versace when I can get 10 Versace Jeans for much less than that?

If you look at our collection, you will find beautiful VJ at a fraction of a Versace, same beauty, same designers, same work quality. Do not think that VJ is a sub-brand as already stated, VJ is becoming a strong Versace arm.

What we like the most about VJ is that the designers are not going too far and many handbags have a beautiful minimalist concept while keeping the style and the luxury feeling. Many dislike the very flashy runway style and are more prone to enjoy more wearable design.

Why My Small Store doesn’t sell Versace?

We did, and they are now only available offline only. That decision came after “funny” people would buy a fake Versace in New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles, then order a real one from us. Cancel the order and return the fake one.

We grew tired of having to make police reports with almost zero chance to get our money back. So, if you want a reasonable price on a Versace, contact us to arrange a meeting here 🙂

Be careful when buying a Versace product

Many like Christina Bednarz Schnell claim that Versace products are manufactured exclusively in Italy and it’s no longer true.  Spotting a fake Versace product can be tough as counterfeiters are getting much better at it.

We have seen a fake $2,500 Versace bag that was 99% perfect, the only difference was a fake serial number! Like many other brands like Diesel, Armani, Certilogo to verify the authenticity of their products. If it fails, you know what it means.

Most of the Versace Jeans products My Small Store sells have a tag with a serial number for easy authenticity verification.

The big problem is when buying a used Versace, most of the time we forget to ask for the serial number and it’s a mistake. I will say that 40-50% of the used Versace are fake 🙁

As already said, the quality of the product, apparel, or accessories like a purse or a backpack, even perfumes can be easy to spot. The poor quality of stitches, zipper, logo, material used, etc. can be great indicators but often it’s not enough.

A new $50 Versace Jeans crossbody might be easy to spot. Unfortunately, we have seen $200 VJ crossbody bags that were absolutely fake – not even looking like a Versace Jeans model but with terrific craftsmanship quality.

It’s easy to imagine a factory making quality unbranded handbags that also produce fake branded ones on the side.