How to spot a fake Amouage

Amouage is my all time favourite fragrance house. Their luxurious craftsmanship, quality and range is exceptional - but such luxury brings a huge market for high-end perfumery counterfeiting.

In Dubai, police caught a gang selling 5000 bottles of fake Amouage fragrances. These substandard products have been found to contain ingredients like antifreeze, urine and harmful bacteria, so can cause adverse health effects. It also has a detrimental impact to the company and their employees who strive to make genuine high-end products in a $400 billion dollar industry. The hunt continues for the counterfeit manufacturers.

I had a recent experience of buying a fake Amouage from eBay (unforgivable I know). During lockdown, I was craving the juicy orange and white floral mystique of ‘Ubar’ and desperately wanted another bottle (read my review for ‘Ubar’ here). I was foolish enough to gamble my luck by buying one from eBay. Before purchasing, I asked the seller about the item, and (of course) he claimed it to be genuine since it was his "dead wife’s favourite fragrance.” I knew before I opened the cellophane that it wasn’t authentic. I’ve outlined what to look for below, and I’ve since done A LOT of research into the matter. But the most ridiculous reveal, was when he stated “I bought this from Debenhams, costing just under £200” and as any Amouage aficionado would know, 1) Debenhams don’t stock Amouage and 2) a 100ml bottle of ‘Ubar’ would never be under £200 since a genuine bottle retails at £260 - no more, no less.

SO, HOW TO SPOT A FAKE AMOUAGE?

Firstly, Amouage is NEVER on sale. If it’s discounted by more than 30% off, it’s definitely a fake.

There are the obvious giveaways from the not-so-clever fakers; discolouration of the perfume liquid itself, misspelled labels, poor printing quality, smudged off-centre bar codes. But the fakers are getting better to get ahead of the game…

OUTSIDE OF THE BOX

As illustrated in the adjacent image, I’ve highlighted 3 things to look out for before you open the box.

The white product information label on the base of the box should be central, not wonky, not off-centre, just perfectly central
The official gold Amouage hologram sticker is NEVER printed off-centre.
The Amouage logo on the front of the box is raised slightly as it’s embossed, if it’s flat it’s fake.

So before you even break the outer cellophane and open the box, you should already be able to spot a fake. Some sellers will decline your return if you’ve opened it (especially if they’re selling dodgy goods) so keeping it in pristine condition should ensure a smooth and non-confrontational return. I wouldn’t even point accusing fingers, since defensive fakers will try everything to keep your money.

INSIDE OF THE BOX

Once sprayed, the fake versions last for only about 10 minutes to an hour as they are basically just filled with water.

Check the waved ridges on the side of the glass bottle (Amouage means “waves” in Arabic) as they are much deeper on the real Amouage, since this effect is hard to achieve in glass.

The more recent bottle caps now have a magnetic closure, so you can’t put the cap on backwards on an authentic bottle, as it will always swing around to the front. If your cap is happy to stay backwards, then it’s a fake.

Once the cap is removed, it should say the fragrance name around an internal collar, this should never wear off.

The logo button on the front of the bottle shouldn’t have any visible glue, attachment of this appliqué is highly skilled and only very few are qualified to do it. So if it’s wonky or messy, it’s fake.

Beware of bottles with plastic caps, the wrong coloured crystal on the cap and bottles which are not smoothly sprayed, with chips on the 4 base corners, are all immediate giveaways for counterfeits.

HOW TO GET AMOUAGE CHEAPER?

Check the official distributors/stockists list on the official Amouage website www.amouage.com (under ‘Our Boutiques’). Don’t be fooled by algorithms on the internet that detect that you’ve been searching for Amouage, so you see a link advertisement to a non-authorised distributor with massively discounted fakes. Always make sure they are approved distributors. Some authorised department stores might offer a discount day/evening or a percentage off if you sign-up to their store/rewards card. Sign-up for notifications from your favourite Amouage store, so you’re notified if they ever have offers on fragrances. If you’re in the UK, look-out for sales in Harrods and Selfridges. The duty free at selected airports will give you the best discount, but not many airports sell Amouage, so check before you fly.

Another good thing about buying a genuine Amouage, is having the official receipt, so if you ever do want to sell it, the clearly visible receipt speaks volumes about its origins and how old it is.

HOW TO GET YOUR MONEY BACK AFTER BUYING A FAKE

Be civil not angry, remember you have a legal right to a refund (within 30 days under the Consumer Rights Act 2015). There’s no obligation but you can report them - trading standards, citizens advice and ActionFraud will help you. If you’ve paid for the item 6 months ago, you’re entitled to a partial refund. If in doubt, ask Amouage to inspect it and get their official word. If you’re having trouble getting your money back, remember that they are breaking the law by selling fake items and your legal rights still apply. Use the ‘chargeback scheme’ with your debit card, make a ‘section 75’ claim with your credit card or use the Resolution Centre if you paid with PayPal.

Although it is strictly prohibited, even Amazon potentially run the risk of selling fake fragrances through their e-commerce marketplace platform, since they use third-party sellers. Amazon have an anti-counterfeiting policy, where it’s the responsibility of these third party sellers to only source and sell authentic items, which I can only imagine is a nightmare to police for Amazon.

The moral of the story is buyer beware. I'm still missing my Ubar.