7 tips for recognising counterfeit Parfum n°5 by Chanel
As products move up the range and become popular with buyers, counterfeiters step in and try all they can to get their piece of the pie. This applies to clothes, shoes, accessories and even perfumes. Chanel No. 5 is one of the best-selling and best-known perfumes in the world, created in 1921 and celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.
Here are 7 tips to help you recognise a genuine Chanel No. 5 perfume from a counterfeit.
Analyse the price
If you look at the price, you'll know straight away whether you're dealing with a counterfeit or not. A perfume takes a lot of time to research, design and package. For all these reasons, perfumes are often very expensive. So when you see a very low price applied to a Chanel No. 5 perfume, it's very often the work of a counterfeiter. So don't hesitate to check out other sales outlets to see how much the perfume is worth. On the official Chanel boutique, the n°5 eau de parfum is sold from €72 for the smallest 35 ml bottle, up to €221 for the largest 200 ml bottle.
Look at the packaging
Packaging is one of the components that most perfumers focus on. It's the first thing the customer sees, so it has to be as original as possible and of the highest quality. Everything counts: the design, the colours, the prints, the typography, the materials, the creativity. When you hold your Chanel No. 5 in your hands, make sure there are no mistakes, no imperfections, no irregularities on the packaging.
Some sellers use authentic advertising photos from the Chanel boutique in their ads. During pre-purchase discussions, don't hesitate to ask your seller for photos of the real product. Some counterfeits can be identified simply by looking at a photo.
On the left a fake Chanel n°5, on the right a real Chanel n°5
Also check the cellophane on your perfume. This is the transparent film that covers the outer box of your perfume. If there's none, or if you can see many folds, beware - it's probably a fake Chanel No. 5 perfume.
Check the bottle cap
The cap of Chanel No. 5 is perfectly symmetrical, so check that it is perfectly centred on the bottle. If it is asymmetrical, it is a counterfeit of Chanel n°5.
On the left, an original bottle with a symmetrical cap, on the right an imitation of Chanel's n°5 with an asymmetrical cap.
Check the quality of the bottle
Take a good look at the quality of Chanel No. 5 perfume - there should be no imperfections or irregularities. Take a good look at the surface of the glass, the outside and the inside of your bottle. The Chanel No.5 perfume bottle is made from high quality materials and has a smooth surface, unlike a Chanel counterfeit made from low quality materials with a rougher surface, and sometimes even plastic.
On the left is an authentic Chanel No. 5 bottle, on the right an imitation of Chanel No. 5.
Inspect the colour of the perfume
Next, look at the colour of your perfume. Most counterfeit versions of Chanel No. 5 are darker in colour than the real thing.
Also check that the liquid is not cloudy and that there is no debris of any kind inside the bottle.
On the left, an original perfume, on the right a copy of Chanel n°5
Test the fragrance
The smell of an authentic perfume is very complex. Chanel n°5 is a women's fragrance with a totally unique composition. If you've ever tried its scent in an official Chanel shop or authorised retailer, you'll be able to spot a counterfeit very easily.
Not only does the smell fade very quickly when it's worn, but even the smell in the bottle deteriorates and loses its scent after a few weeks.
Finally, worn, authentic Chanel No. 5s have layers of scent that develop over time, while fake Chanel No. 5s have only one layer of scent. the latter lack complexity.
Other details
The back of the perfume
Also check the back of the perfume. Given the transparency of the bottle, you should be able to read the label stuck on the front of the perfume.
Here's what you need to look out for when it comes to an authentic Chanel No.5
The tube inside the bottle
You shouldn't see a tube inside the bottle either - if you do, it's a counterfeit Chanel No. 5.
For example, here you can see the tube inside the bottle, so it's really an imitation of Chanel No. 5.
Buy your n°5 de Chanel perfume used with Obvy
Despite being 100 years old, Chanel's No. 5 fragrance is one of the most coveted in the world. Its huge success has attracted its fair share of scams and counterfeits.
When buying this type of product, we recommend that you use a secure payment to complete the transaction, so that the transaction can be traced. You know what you have to do to buy your perfume from a private individual: use Obvy!
So we've written an article that tells you more about how to tell when a perfume is counterfeit or genuine.