The DL: Buying a designer bag is already exciting and overwhelming, but buying a designer bag in Paris or Italy (or Europe) adds a whole other layer of fun! I bought my first designer bag in Paris and it was the most magical experience. I couldn’t find a lot of information online before my trip, so I went to social media to try and find out what little I could beforehand. I ended up buying another designer purse later on in my trip in Italy. Here are my 5 things to know before buying a designer bag in Paris or Italy:
1. You don’t need an appointment.
You do not need an appointment when buying a designer bag in Paris or Italy. I was super stressed because I didn’t get an appointment before my Paris trip, but turns out it doesn’t matter. Unless you are looking for a very specific, very high priced or rare bag you don’t need one. If you want to have one to have one, you can make it via the website online or connecting with the store via email. I bought my Chanel bag without an appointment in Paris and my Gucci bag in Italy and had a wonderful experience with both.
2. Bring your passport to the appointment.
In order to get tax refunds you have to show your passport to the staff, so they can put down your information on the refund forms. This is a must have when buying a designer bag in Paris or Italy.
3. Keep your VAT Tax refund forms.
You will get a significant discount when buying a bag in Paris or Italy compared to the US (10-13% back), its called VAT (value added tax) refund. Once you make a purchase, the store will give you specific forms. You will need to keep the forms with you and show at the last airport you leave from to qualify for the refund. An example is if you are going from Paris to Italy then USA, and you bought your bag in Paris, you don’t show your forms until the Italian airport. There are kiosks around the airport and you will need to get your form signed or stamped by customs (If you are flying out of terminal 3 at Charles Degalle it is super hard to find (go to arrivals and then make sure you ring the doorbell of the customs door.) Every other airport its pretty obvious, and you can check before you get to the airport where they are located. You will need to have your item ready for inspection as well. You will get a refund via card (3-4 weeks) or cash at the airport whatever you choose. Highlighting here again MAKE SURE to keep your receipt and boxes for the inspection by customs. More about VAT here.
4. Limited options.
When shopping in store, yes there are multiple locations of all the designer stores but if you are looking for a specific bag and color you may be limited to what you can purchase. For example in Chanel, they had a couple colors in some of the bags I was looking at but I went in with an open mind and not looking for one specific bag so it wasn’t an issue, whereas with Gucci I ended up having to go to another location to get the exact color in the bag I wanted.
5. Make sure to celebrate.
Once you have decided on a bag, if your sales associate doesn’t offer you champagne just make a comment that you would like some. Soak in the moment!
I hope this helps make your first buying experience less stressful. Also to note, if you are visiting multiple locations make sure to check out the flagship store in those for Paris it is: Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Celine, etc. and in Italy, Gucci’s is in Florence.
Planning a trip to Paris, first timer’s guide here!
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