Dior bags carry serial markers, hardware stamps, and stitching counts that replicas do not match. Authentication services check four things: the date code, the interior heat stamp, the letterforms on the charms, and the zipper. A replica can look close in a photo and still fail all four. Dior does not authenticate bags for third parties, so buyers pay a service or return to the boutique that sold the bag.
What Dior Puts on a Bag
- Date code. A leather tab inside the interior pocket carries two letters and four digits. The letters mark the workshop. The first two digits mark the month. The last two mark the year. Formats changed across decades. Confirm the format for the year of the bag with Dior client services.
- Heat stamp. "Christian Dior" sits above "PARIS", pressed into leather or the interior tag. Letters hold even height and depth.
- Hardware. The Lady Dior carries four letter charms: D, I, O, R. The clasp on many models shows a CD. Engraving is cut into the metal, not printed on it.
- Stitching. Even spacing, matched thread color, no backstitch on the exterior.
Where Replicas Fail
Replica makers copy shape and color. They miss the parts that cost money.
- Date code fonts. Stamped digits on replicas run wide or shallow. Factories used specific die sets.
- Hardware weight. Solid brass charms weigh more than plated zinc. A kitchen scale shows the gap.
- Plating. Chrome and gold tone wear at the corners within months on plated parts.
- Lining and edge paint. Edge paint on replicas chips at the strap fold. Dior seals the edge in layers.
- Letterforms. The D bowl and the O width differ by a millimeter or two. Measure them.
How a Paid Check Works
Entrupy uses a microscope camera and a trained model. Real Authentication takes photos. Turnaround runs 24 to 48 hours. Cost runs $10 to $50 per item. A written opinion from a service is not a Dior statement and carries no guarantee.
Legal Facts in the United States
Selling a counterfeit bag is a federal crime under 18 U.S.C. 2320. A first offense carries up to 10 years and a $2 million fine for an individual. CBP seizes counterfeit imports and destroys them. A replica cannot be authenticated. A seller who calls a replica "authenticated" exposes the business to a trademark suit from LVMH, Dior's parent company.
If you buy a bag and the date code does not match the year, or the charms feel light, stop. Get the opinion in writing before money changes hands.