Anyone know if there are still stores in the Chinatown/Harwin area that sell knock off versions of name brand purses? Any particular store that you can recommend? Thanks Ags.

From what my wife says, you have to be a regular or know someone to get the good knockoffs. But yes they are still there.

The wife still makes a knockoff-purse run to Harwin every now and then.

Any particular store that the wives are willing to reveal?

My wife won't even tell me which ones she frequents... and apparantly there's some sort of understood "knock-three-times" type signal that gets you accepted in the circle of trust.

Shady, shady, shady... but I do like heading over there for area rugs.

Just about any of the stores that sells purses will have them. The problem will be getting into the area where they have the good stuff. It's very shady almsot like a secret society, bribes and such do not usually work. You just have to know the right people. I bet if you asked around in the workplace at least one person you know has the hookup.

No clue. She just tells me that she's "going to Harwin," and I thank her for not caring that I don't tag along.

I know they are the buildings from Gessner going into town. Look for the long row metal buildings. I would just go to a few and take a look at them. Bring a print out of the real thing to compare.

My mom used to take me (when I was way younger), but I know a lot of those have been shut down. Dad told her not to go, when I mentioned "Hey mom, is that the store we went to?" one day, as it was on the news for being busted.

~egon

at least they have the 3 knock rule here then. Wife and I went to NYC for vacation earlier this year and all you hear as you walk down the street is, hey pssst you want to buy purse? Then they take you to a back room and show you their secret stash (complete with door disguised as normal display wall).

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and apparantly there's some sort of understood "knock-three-times" type signal that gets you accepted in the circle of trust.

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Yeah, I used to work with a girl that had a hook-up with someone on Harwin. She was always taking people to some place over there for purses. It was like a right of passage for the women in the office if you were invited to go to the store and got in the back room.

Please, for the love of God, don't encourage them. By "them", I mean the stores. I have been involved in busting these people and all I will say is that by continuing to support these types of businesses, you are directly contributing to segments of society that hate our country and jump at every opportunity to exploit it. That said, it has been a couple of years since Harwin has been hit, so it should be pretty easy to get "in".

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by continuing to support these types of businesses, you are directly contributing to segments of society that hate our country and jump at every opportunity to exploit it

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i agree.

take all the money you were going to waste on the fake Gucci bag and buy some drugs dammit!

our old secretary used to go down there to that area. she described it the same way, like you really had to have an inside connection to get the good fake stuff.

I dont have a problem with it.

**** it. Fake or not, its all made in the same sweatshop right?

i don't think you need an "in". my sister in law went to harwin with one of her girlfriends a couple years back. she just asked if they had any "other" purses. they took them to the back. she's only 22 now...

Asking when there's no one around and not looking like a cop are huge bonuses. That's just from my experience in NYC on Canal. I could give a **** about the bags, but people back in TX wanted some. They were really, really good fakes. I also picked up some awesome bootleg movies where the guy films in the theater. Hilarious.