How to spot a fake Ed Hardy cap

Which of these Ed Hard caps are fakes? It's easier than you think to pick them out. The real one is the one on the right in orange and brown while the fakes are in the black or white camouflage.

Ed Hardy products have been so hot in our store since we started carrying them over a year ago. The quality and attention to detail that goes into each products really shows. Their products are much sought after by fans and my staff alike. Unfortunately, the premium price this product pulls in makes it a favorite of counterfeiters too.

Lately I've been seeing some fake Ed Hardy caps floating around. A true fan would probably kill themselves before ever putting one on. However, I can see how the uninitiated may think they're getting a great deal. Unfortunately, they're only fooling themselves.

I've gotten my hands on a couple of fakes to really study how they're different from the genuine article. By no means is this a conclusive investigation but I hope to have starting point for others on how to spot a fake. The first 5 points are the most obvious while the remainder is harder to distinguish or easily fixed by the counterfeiters.

Hologram Sticker. Very obvious differences here.

• Not a Hologram. Real one has a serial number and countermeasure. Fake is just a shiny sticker
• Wrong Symbol. It's supposed to be a skull in a top hat with crossbones.
• Wrong Size. Real sticker is 1.5 inches while fake is 1 inch

Materials, Bill and Front.

• The material is quite a bit rougher, the fake is almost a canvas and comes in this camouflage pattern that doesn't exist.
• On the real cap there's also one extra line of stitching that runs right above the bill.

Materials, Mesh. This is where it's most obvious. The fake has this horrible poorly made material where the fakers didn't even try to replicate the original.

Adjustable Plastic Band. The fake one is flimsy and much thinner and doesn't have the website in raised letters.


Metal button on the top of cap. On the left, the real one definitely is more intricate and detailed. I can't even tell what the character the fake one is trying to be... an ape?

Embroidery. On fakes this is probably where the counterfeiters spent all their efforts. Even to me it's hard to tell it's a fake from it. There are some tell tale clues though:

• There is a noticeable shortage of density in the embroidery
• The lettering on the words "Ed Hardy" is a bit elongated, especially the loops in the beginning and end.

• Stones. The fake ones are all dull and placed in an odd way. Real hats would never have the stones placed on the eyes of the tiger.
  
• General Shape. The fake ones have no shape due to the cheap materials used. So even the front panels sag a bit.
  
• Country of origin and materials tag. There is none on the fake one.
• Ed Hardy Label. The tag is poorly sewed and much larger than the real one.
  
• The printing on the ribs on the inside. The "www.donedhardy.com" printing is quite a bit bigger.
  

When I was doing research for this post I found ads for fake hats all over the place. There really is a lot of fakes for sale out there. What pisses me off is the prices these cheaters are hoping to get. The prices are cheaper than the real thing but not by much. They're really ripping you off!

I could spot out the fake items right away, even from a tiny web for sale picture. The difference between the genuine article and the fake is very obvious. The 2 fake caps I have are quite cheap feeling and the mesh really won't hold out on repeated wearings.

If you think you have a fake hat, bring it by the store. We'll try to help you figure out it's authenticity.