Nigerian Shopper's Guide To Always Buying Original Products

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, it has once been said, and it doesn’t get truer than when great consumer goods are produced. The market is littered with adulterated versions of your favorite bag, perfume, shoes, phones, wristwatches, wines…

It can get really discouraging sometimes, especially if you genuinely set out to buy the original version of a product. In the more painful cases, people have been known to buy a counterfeit product for EXACTLY the price of the original, only to realize- weeks later – that the color of that expensive Gucci bag is beginning to fade, or the leather is beginning to tarnish.

How do you prevent this? How do you keep from falling prey to the cunning replicas of your favorite products? Here are a few things you can do:

ONLY VISIT POPULAR STORES

A number of shops like Shoprite,  Game stores , Prince Ebano,  Spar, Cash & carry,  Park ‘n’ Shop, etc are renown for only stocking the original versions of products, so it is hard to go wrong when shopping through these outlets. These stores stock genuine products directly supplied to them by the producers.  While they may be a bit expensive, this is a small price to pay for the assurance of quality.

If you’re unable to visit any of these stores, be on the lookout for huge supermarkets. There’s a plethora of them around the country, these stock good products too.

Visiting ‘nameless’ stores may provide you a lower purchase cost, but with it comes the high risk of substandard goods. You will have to make the mental bargain and decide if it is worth it. If, however, you really desire a quality purchase, always use stores with a brand name- those guys have a reputation to uphold and an image to protect and won’t run the risk of selling counterfeit merchandise.

‘MOUTHWATERING OFFERS’ ARE, AS A RULE, SUSPECT

In the face of existing economic realities, it might be tempting to fall for unbelievably cheap goods or services.  There are many products with prices that seem too good to be true. Unless you can verify that there is indeed a promo going on, be naturally on the defensive when you see price slashes that border on the unbelievable. Generally, things that are too good to be true usually are.

Let your inner gauge guide you: if the price looks like a steal, someone is probably trying to rob you. If you catch yourself looking at the price tag and thinking *“unbelievable” , *it probably is.

EXAMINE THE PROPERTIES

Every brand has its unique identifier. Sometimes it’s in the spelling of the brand name (counterfeit manufacturers usually use an approximation of this, easily missed by the imprudent shopper). Sometimes, on a bag, Versace is spelled ‘Vercace’ and that is all you need to know to retract your debit card and bounce.

ASK EXPERTS

If you know people who have an eye for purchasing original products, ask them for help when shopping. People who have spent their time buying name brands over time pick up the ability to differentiate, purely based on nuances, between a really good counterfeit and the real deal and they should be your allies on the quest for originality.

As an aside, if you are shopping for the Calabar Carnival that takes place at the end of the year every year, note that tou can always find deals/rooms on hotels near Calabar Carnival by clicking this link. 

Do you have more tips for buying genuine products over counterfeit ones? Let us know in the comments section. Thanks!