WE CAN HELP YOU AVOID BUYING AND SHIPPING COUNTERFEIT ITEMS

The Conhecer o Americano staff receives hundreds of items at our facility, so we have become pretty good at distinguishing authentic goods from merchandise that may be counterfeit, bootleg or otherwise not of the same quality you expect when you buy a particular brand.

Conhecer o Americano can help keep you safe by flagging potentially counterfeit merchandise and informing you when an item may not be available for export due to US and Portugal customs regulations.

How We Spot Fake Purses, Beauty Products, Clothes and More

Counterfeit items may closely resemble the authentic product, and may be similar in style, size and appearance. Counterfeit items are often of much lower quality, though, and frequently have errors, blemishes or poor craftsmanship. These items may not function properly, may fall apart soon after you buy them or, in some cases, may not work at all.

When merchandise arrives at the distribution center in Sarasota, Florida, USA, trained login agents carefully inspect the products to verify that the merchandise is not broken and that the product matches the description on the merchant invoice.

During this process, login agents will look for cues that the item may be counterfeit. Some potential signs of a counterfeit item include new luxury brand items with low values or merchant invoices that indicate an unusually low purchase price for high-end items.

Low-quality materials or poor quality on an expensive brand are common signs of a counterfeit item. Obvious mistakes on the item’s logo or spelling errors on the item itself also indicate counterfeit merchandise.

Conhecer o Americano Cannot Export Counterfeit Items (It's Illegal)

If you receive a counterfeit item that you purchased from a retailer in the USA, we may be able to help you return the item to the merchant. We cannot ship counterfeit items to any other party, including recipients, other than the seller, in the USA.

How to spot counterfeits

Inspect deals on designer goods before you buy

Do some research before buying an item so you'll know how the real thing tends to differ from a fake. Some manufacturers offer advice on detecting and avoiding counterfeits on their company websites, including Callaway Golf, Microsoft, and the footwear, clothing, and accessories companies Coach and Ugg.

Look for security features

 

To help consumers spot a fake, some manufacturers add something to their products that is hard to reproduce. For example, Ugg shoeboxes and some of its products come with reflective stickers that change from black to white as you rotate them 90 degrees. 

Similarly, it's a bad sign if a product is missing a certificate of authenticity or other assurance the manufacturer routinely provides. 

Check out the merchant

 

You can be pretty confident that a Prada handbag sold in a Neiman Marcus store is the real thing. But you should give greater scrutiny to products sold by less-familiar merchants, whether they operate a walk-in store or a retail website.

 Check the retailer's reputation by doing a Web search with the company or individual's name and words like "rip-off," "complaints," and "reviews."

Beware of ultra-low prices and risky sellers

 

A company charging significantly less for an item than other retailers should raise a red flag that something's amiss.

Use a credit card. That can provide the best protection because you can dispute a charge if you purchase misrepresented merchandise.