ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Fred Perry Polo Shirts - Tell The Real From The Fake

Updated on June 9, 2010

Fred Perry Polo Shirts - Are They Real or Are They Counterfeit

If you're looking for bargain Fred Perry clothes, pay attention to the following advice on distinguishing genuine products from fakes. Although following this advice cannot guarantee that you'll receive the genuine article (the only way of making this happen would be to purchase directly from an authorised, reputable merchant), ignoring it will greatly increase the chance of you getting lumbered with a counterfeit.

The Start

The Fred Perry brand is regarded as being one of the most historic and iconic fashion and sportswear brands in British History. It was founded by the English Wimbledon champion of the same name. Fred Perry clothing has always been incredibly popular throughout the range's whole time in existence, initially starting with nothing more than a basic, white polo shirt.

Throughout the last few decades the Fred Perry clothing range has embraced, stimulated and in some cases created and led the way in a number of clothing fads. It was the very first brand to make the crossover between street fashion and sportswear when its polo shirts were adopted by the 'Mod' subculture.

These days, they've expanded their range of offerings, for instance Fred Perry Footwear and accessories, and now have also teamed up with various other brands, designers and celebrities for collaborative work. Celebrated European designer Raf Simons has created developed unique collections with them for several seasons now, and they also have a number of seasons lined up for a collaboration with singer Amy Winehouse.

With the level of fame that Fred Perry has reached, inevitably they would sooner or later be the target of clothing counterfeiters. Unfortunately, when a brand of clothing increases in popularity, it also gains the attention of career-criminal conmen and counterfeiters looking to make a cheap buck off of un-expecting shoppers. The most faked item that you should be aware of is the Fred Perry Polo Shirt, as counterfeiters find this one the cheapest to reproduce and sell and it is also the most popular genuine item from Fred Perry.

While it is generally quite easy to spot which polo shirts are fake and which real, sometimes the counterfeiters will utilize methods for making the replica look a little more like the original, and this can lead to confusion amongst the buyers.

If you're looking for bargain Fred Perry clothes, pay attention to the following advice on distinguishing genuine products from fakes. Although following this advice cannot guarantee that you'll receive the genuine article (the only way of making this happen would be to purchase directly from an authorised, reputable merchant), ignoring it will greatly increase the chance of you getting lumbered with a counterfeit.

1) The Wreath Logo

The Fred Perry Wreath is an extremely recognisable brand logo. Due to how fairly simple the logo is, the criminal gangs find it quite easy to replicate. Luckily, few of them replicate it perfectly so there are still a few points to look out for. First of all, look at exactly where the logo is located. Authentic logos will be found just above one's heart, certainly much higher or lower. Additionally, it is only ever sewn or embroidered on to the polo shirt, never printed.

2) The Buttons

Buttons for a Fred Perry Polo Shirt, with couple of distinctive exceptions, will always be the same colour as the primary colour of the rest of the top. For example, if the polo shirt is mostly red but with a white collar and cuffs, the colour of the buttons will always be red. There are one or two exceptions to this, though. One of the collaborations Fred Perry did with renowned Belgian designer Raf Simons used buttons of opposing colour. In addition there are a few limited edition styles coming from Japan that have differently coloured buttons. However, nearly all Fred Perry Polos will have the same colour.

Furthermore, every button will need the text 'Fred Perry' visibly embossed into it.

3) The Tag

The content label at the back of the inside of the garment is an area that is often overlooked by the counterfeit gangs, even though it can contain many clues hinting towards the authenticity of the product. This tag area is generally hard to miss and is printed with the word 'Fred Perry' in a very significant, crystal clear sans-serif typeface, complimented with the garments size and the typical Fred Perry wreath logo. Fake items are usually generally designed in some sort of wiry, spaced out typeface alongside with a really bad attempt of a wreath logo.

There is an urban myth that says that shirts with a Green tag are always fake, however this is not always the case. If the shirt that you are looking at was made in the past couple of years, the tag will probably be black or blue; but not green. However, if the shirt was made in the 90s there is a very good chance it will be green. A Fred Perry polo shirt with a green tag will either be old and/or fake, but it will never be new and genuine.

4) The Merchant and Store

Take a look at the merchant or store that has the shirt for sale. If you’re not able to physically see the merchant (like if you’re buying from eBay or Craigslist) then look at other elements such as the photographs and the writing. Check the grammar of any text, and be sure to call any provided telephone numbers to see if they are real.

Examine the merchant if you can. Does he or she (and their store) look like the sort of ambassador a a prestigious brand like Fred Perry would choose to represent them? Is the store tidy or are the garments just piled up everywhere? Where is the store located? Is it in a respectable shopping district of town, or is the ‘store’ the trunk of a car marked in a Wal-Mart parking lot?

Pay particular attention to the selling price. Even though costs will fluctuate a little bit between stockists, it's not usually by a large amount. The only time you’ll find new items price drastically lower than usual would be during a sale or clearance event. It will not be regular pricing. If the vendor is offering a deal like ‘Buy One Get One Free’ on his Fred Perry Stock, it’s probably fake stock.

5) If In Doubt, Stay Out

This tip cannot be stressed enough. Should you have any doubts or ‘bad feelings’ as to the authenticity of the items, simply don't buy them. This way, if the item does turn out fake then you will not have been ripped-off and you will not have contributed to the success of a criminal enterprise.

If everything seems to be right about an item, yet you still don’t feel completely confident, you should phone Fred Perry. They can help you in verifying the authenticity of the merchandise by looking at different areas of the garment as well as pairing the garment with the product's unique serial number. Should they give it the green light, you will then be able to purchase in confidence.

The very best tool you have to guard yourself against fake products is your brain. If something appears too good to be true, it almost certainly is. When you are lured by something which appears to be cheaper than it ought to be, ask yourself if it makes any sense that this particular item is so low-priced. To ensure your safety, when you are looking at getting a Fred Perry Polo shirt the most effective strategy would be to look for a reputable, authorised retailer of Fred Perry clothing. There is normally a minimum of one in every sizable town and city and there are many trading on the internet. You can get a definitive list by contacting Fred Perry.

Fred Perry clothing has been amazingly popular during its whole life, starting out with the first, simple polo shirt. Fred Perry Polo Shirts are incredibly popular around the world, both with consumers and, regrettably, counterfeiters. Equipped with the information in this article, you'll be able to identify the majority of fake Fred Perry polo shirts and thus help yourself avoid being a victim of the criminals.

A Song About Sa-kis.co.uk

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)