A couple of days ago Gucci in Fanar was shutdown by the ministry. Of course rumors quickly started to spread that Gucci was shutdown because they were caught selling fake goods. That is not true of course. The reason Gucci was shutdown is because the inspector wanted to see the original store license which they didn’t have. They only had a copy of the license in Fanar because the original was at the head office in Shuwaikh so the inspector shutdown the shop for the day.
70 replies on “Why Gucci was shut down for a day”
Where did you get this info from Mark?
I also heard Villa Moda, just last week, was caught selling fakes too.
How many times has this rumour circulated? No smoke without fire imo.
I got this information from a Villa Moda employee.
About the rumors on fakes, an authorized dealer can not sell fakes. Period. If people think they do they’re not very smart.
in Kuwait with facebook,, BBM’s smoke is all over the place but no fire.
the inspector should have been more flexible and the store should always keep the original.
what prevents an authorized dealer from selling fakes??? they can make an extra buck on that…
Seriously? You think Gucci as a brand would be ok with their store in Kuwait selling fakes and damaging their reputation? You don’t think they have a system in place where they would know if one of their stores around the world were selling fakes? If they can control their merchandise in their stores in China and Thailand I don’t think its hard to control the goods in their store in Kuwait.
The Gucci dealership in Kuwait isn’t the first dealership in the world u know that right?
what an a$$, why would he do that ? so devoted to his tight work schedule ? please!
lol i noticed something funny the other day. Because security and officials are very lenient all the time here in Kuwait when they do end up doing their jobs we get upset hehe
thank god, my wife got me a wallet from there last week for my birthday, i was afraid its a fake :p
s. That is not true of course. T
why the of course comment, Bvlgari was caught selling fakes, Gucci can’t?
Fact of the matter is, if i can sit at a sheesha cafe and get talked into buying copied DVD’s for 750 fills in broad day light, Gucci CAN sell fake stuff.
Off course, I’m not making the claim that they are, but they can if they wanted too and it would probably go under the radar.
I don’t understand why everyone is so negative, why is it hard for people to believe that a shop got closed down because of licensing issues?
J.Z: Bvlgari wasn’t caught selling fakes, that was also another rumor. If they were caught selling fakes Bvlgari would have taken the brand back from the local dealer and they wouldn’t be proudly mentioned on the website under dealership in Kuwait.
i don’t question Gucci’s reputation. but local kuwaiti merchants … excuse me .. what integrity do they have ?
we see local dealers all over the country don’t respect the brand name they represent and they get away with it.
very clear example are the car dealers who don’t provide any decent service or warranty to the cars they sell though they call themselves dealers.
its not being negative.. but in kuwait i don’t respect who call themselves dealers until proven otherwise.
btw i am not saying i believe the rumor .. but im keeping an open mind.. it can be true or in this instance it can be false.
If your read anything from BBM, its likely that its a rumor. So childish.
My problem is not whether the products are genuine or not as they are from the branded label logo itself. They have to be genuine or they won’t last in Kuwait. My biggest problem is that most of the stores in Kuwait are not following fashion. Walk into a Versace store in America or Europe and its nothing like what we have in Kuwait. To me in my opinion it seems that after a fashion dies or seasons change, their left over products are sent to the Gulf. A good example was TOMMY HILFIGER.
I mean as a country that spends alot on fashion and has the most expensive dress in the world; we should get the best.
A guy just realized to check upon Gucci store in Al fanar and by “chance” he found that they have only a copy of their license !! and the original kept in other place!!
either this guy is smart or Villa moda’s people are STUPID !
I don’t believe the “Fake goods” story but it can be true .. who knows.
Mark, your views are very naive.
IF they wanted, It would be incredibly easy for someone to manufacture fake Gucci wallets etc and pass them off as original INSIDE THE STORE.
Benefits: pay some Thai sweatshop $1 instead of Gucci Italy $100 and sell them both for 200.
Do you think that they have some Italian rep from the mother company sitting inside the Kuwait store checking authenticity?
Get real!
Agaad: If sultan center or large coops can keep track of their employees to make sure they don’t steal you think a small store with limited high end goods can’t keep track of theirs? That’s you being naive since you don’t know how stores operate.
Frankom: Maybe the guy was checking all the stores in Fanar.
Regarding TSC and other grocers, I actually spent a lot of time in my youth working for large national grocers in the USA. I got to know some of the loss prevention members pretty well. Most theft and loss was internal (ie employee pilfering.)
Gunsmoke is right – Many of these companies might hire unscrupulous employees who dabble in things they shouldnt dabble in.
The ministry of commerce cannot control food prices in local coops (a government entity) let alone examining and checking all goods entering Kuwait and impose stiff penalties? I dont think so.
I dont rule out anything here.
Anything can happen in Kuwait. Look at the mishrif disaster.
Saying an employee might have a con going where he trys to sell fake goods as real is completely different than saying the gucci dealer in Kuwait is trying to pass fake goods as real.
nowadays people beleve EVERYTHING they read in their e-mails/bbm/newpapers but question everything that’s released from an authorized source..
Seriously people , do u think that I wouldnβt know if my bag is fake ? Iβm not that naΓ―ve
If youβre very familiar with the high class quality, I.e. you shop there most of the time, itβll be easier for you to recognize any fake goods even if its draja ola taqleed as you say
But if you just happen to own one wallet or one bag, it would be very difficult for you to know the difference
And as mark said if Gucci stores knew that the dealer was selling fake merchandise, they wouldβve taken the license long time ago
And one thing to consider is that ( el tijara le3ba wa95a) every dealer want to destroy his opponent and gain the high reputation in this country
You would think that such dirty games donβt happen here but THEY DO
Pleeeeese people, next time u receive an e-mail think with ur brains a bit ..
why would a shop keep license in head office? thats a newbish thing to do.
“About the rumors on fakes, an authorized dealer can not sell fakes. Period. If people think they do theyβre not very smart.”
Actually they can. And in Kuwait they do. I’m not saying Villa Moda or Gucci is doing it. But I know for a FACT that many companies are doing it.
“The reason Gucci was shutdown is because the inspector wanted to see the original store license which they didnβt have”
Thats democracy, a tiny inspector shuts down Villa Moda!!!
its either he is stupid, doesn’t know who owns it, or its a bad lie that was told to the employees to pass it to people like you.
fake or no fake, don’t think that the license was the real reason to shut it down.
The license was in fact ‘the’ reason for the shutdown. It’s not just Gucci but also some stalls in Fanar have been closed down too.
The shops needed to renew some kind of a license from the municipality/dept. of commerce; every store/stall that din’t have it were closed off, mostly on the ground floor. Some stalls are still closed awaiting their renewal.
I don’t believe that gucci got shot down becuz it sells fake goods.Comon’ a known brand that big would never associate itself with fake products.But yah i agree that the guy should have been more flexible towards the situation.
I just read a comment that said kuwait had the world’s most expensive dress, is that true?
People who can’t tell the difference between genuine & fake are simply ” PLAIN STUPID “
la tshtrooN Min ilq8 o ray7w balkom ily b5a6rh shay ya6lbah min il sayt lan 9ar wayid kallam 3ala il motho3… ;x
Fact: Vila moda company orderred a shipment of goods a while back. One of the items included scarfs that were being sold at their flagship store at about kD100. Anyway, while they were being shipped these scarfs and other items were damaged at sea. As you know, items are usualy insured when shipped. Guess how much the listed price of those scarfs were on the insurance claim… Kd3.
Put that in your pipe and smoke it!
in all the arguments here, I didn’t see one which said that this is how they prevent fakes from being sold….Now I am not saying they sell fakes, but its possible, and with or without the knowledge of the management, it’s possible, and if it’s possible, then chances are high its happening…as long as it is made in a sweat shop, its possible.
If the store was selling fake’s – it would not have shut down for just one day!
End comments!
People just love a good conspiracy theory.
I was at Al-Fanar yesterday, and almost 30% of the stores were shut down. Please stop all the “fake” bs crap, because we all know that Villa Moda does not sell fakes. People who spread these rumors are the same people who can’t afford them, and they do that to feel better about themselves. Pretty lame if you ask me. On a side note, the company is owned by a member of the royal family, so I think that they are the last people to sell fake goods.
Also, what an irony when everyone says that they are fakes, but once the 80% discounts start, you’ll see a stampede running towards them. Some of you are a bunch of hypocrites.
clarification is appreciated.
Well said Dana *applauds*
Dana..
With all due respect…
1- villa moda is a public company. It’s majority share holder is DIFC Lifestyle Co. (an Dubai based investment co.). The royal member that runs the company owns a around 20%.
2- villa moda was in dire straights, and getting desperate due to declining profit margins between 2005-2007, which by the way was the period in which people were accusing them of selling fake goods.
Due to the desperaty of situation, the member of royal family at the the time sold vila moda by making it a public company on the stock market.
3- the perfect person who could get away with doing such a thing and getting away with it would be such a person with connections and
wasta, would be member of a royal family.
Personally, I do all my shopping in harrods (knightsbrigde) twice a year, which seems to be much, much cheeper than milla moda for some strange reason. Don’t forget that’s including taxes. At least one knows they’re gettingthe real deal in harrods. There aren’t people saying harrods sell fake goods… So like some one mentioned earlier… There’s no smoke without a fire.
Dana, it’s ruling family not royal family. And thanks for letting us know that God had brought them down to Kuwait through a beacon of light! Pathetic argument.
@Sfsa78 – “Ya3ni ana ili 3andi floos waroo7 london!” Don’t worry, baby, I also shop in Europe. Harrods is such a “cliche” for shopping, btw. π There are far more better places. Please don’t brag about your shopping trips in London, because there are many people who shop in Paris, Milan, New York, and not only London, and they still buy stuff from Villa Moda. If you’re a VIP customer in Villa Moda, which many of Kuwait’s elite family members are, then you would know that you’d get a 20% discount on almost everything, except jeans and things like that. So please don’t brag about your bi-yearly shopping trips at Harrods. Take care.
I forgot a point… Who told you to shop at Villa Moda? No one is forcing you to buy from them. We’re not here comparing prices, but we’re talking about the fact that some claim that they sell fake goods. I don’t know why it’s such a hot topic. It beats me! Many of you just find excuses to ruin their reputation. Someone says they’re fake, the other person says that they’re more expensive than Europe. No one is forcing you to buy from them, but that doesn’t mean that you can spread rumors about them.
Dana..
Maekhalef.. I appologise if it upsets you if I told u where I shop, but try to keep to the point.
Dana…
The reason I used to shop in harrods because it was just a five minute walk-from-where I used to live, (I only moved to Kuwait in 2002),and it’s a one stop shop, food, clothes etc, and I hate walking and shopping so it was easier for me. Just like you going to the local jam3iya, harrods was my local, why would I brag about that??? I don’t own the damn place.. However, when I moved here I found out how such a big deal these things are inkuwaiti society. The same idea of people dressing up to drink coffe in starbucks when it first came out.
Btw, why are you so offended and upset? Relax. π
Dana, it looks like you’re a bargain hunter and are after discounts. Try the christmas sales in London. At least 40%-60% off. 20% discount at villa moda just adds insult to injury.
Dana –
1. Ruling family not Royal Family – AlSabahs were chosen by the merchant families of Kuwait to lead and this relationship is further consolidated via the Constitution. They are not a ‘royal family.’
2. Kuwaiti founder of Villa Moda was unanimously removed by board of directors a few weeks ago without absolving him of financial responsibilities.
3. Villa Moda has still not declared its yearly income to Min of Commerce.
The above points are fact not supposition.
Chosen by the merchant families? Oh, so they can get together and “unchoose” them anytime they want? The Al-Sabah’s were chosen by the people of Kuwait, and not by the “merchant families.” The merchant families go back to the 1920’s and 1930’s when they had a somewhat part in politics when the Amir formed a legislative council, which is where the merchant families has some power influence as they were made aides to the Amir. Read your history please as your screen name is quite ironic. A clueless insider! I’m not here to defend the royal family, but you should be damn sure that they are “Taj Ras” all of you here, including me. Without them, there wouldn’t even be a Kuwait…
dear Dana
al sabah family they are ( taj rasek ) broo7ek , they are your only tiara up on your head and save your dignity please
best regard
normal kuwaiti
I must admit that “The kingdom of The state of Kuwait” or even “Kuwait Kingdom” has a rather nice feel to it.
Mark Habibi, it’s not the bandwith it’s the downloading limitation
“the royal member that runs the company owns around 20%.”
Sheikh Majed has NOTHING to do with Villa Moda anymore! He is COMPLETELY out of the whole company.. not 20%… nothing!!
Dana, you are confused. It’s ruling family.
Also, there was no Emir in the 20’s and 30’s. The ruler was known as Sheikh. The first Emir of Kuwait was Abdullah Al-Salem when the constitution was put in place.
How do you know a blog is successful and significant ?
When the post talks about Gucci shop being closed for a day and the last 10 comments on this same post talk about ruling family / royal family β public shares β some crown on someoneβs head β discounts and cheapos β personal insults β a countries history and merchant families and on and on and on but the one thing any of the comments fail to mention is βwhy Gucci was closed for a day?β
Brilliant!!
dear Lufsseccus
one thing any of the comments fail to mention is βwhy Gucci was closed for a day?β
-====================
only God know the reason π
By the way, this blog alone is proof of the freedom that has benn guaranteed to us by the Alsabah. Look at our neighbouring countries in our region.. Then you’ll know why the Alsabah are taj rasna..
even though everything is not perfect, bes 3asheen ib ni3ma wa karama…. And don’t you forget it!!
@normal kuwaiti:
Are you even Kuwaiti? How can you say something like that? If they are not taj rasik, then who is? Bas gool il 7amdillah ina 7ikamna 3adleen oo ma yamshoon foog il ‘ganoon. If you said something like this in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Syria or other countries, they’ll literally hang you! I’m just saying. π
The “fake” Plaza Athenee hotel in Bneid El Gar is owned by a sheikh, and when he was confronted with the blatant trademark infringement (i.e. theft), he just shrugged and said he didn’t care
https://www.plaza-athenee-paris.com/
just sayin’
yallah digaw 3ala scope o balshaw 3achaaf o mad7 bil shyookh, sh9ar bil dinya, shfeehum il 3aalam yanaw?
…And your point is?
Marina Hotel is also owned by a Sheikh, so will the new Four Seasons that will open in the city by next year.
Oh, and thank you. I know what the Plaza Athenee is. It’s on one of my favorite shopping streets, Avenue Montaigne. I stay a few minutes away at the Georges V though. π
P.S. There’s also a Plaza Athenee in the Upper East Side in New York, yet it doesn’t belong to the Dorchester Group either, which is owned by the Sultan of Brunei. (Not the hotel in New York, but he owns the Dorchester Group which owns The Dorchester in London, obviously, the New York Palace in New York (where they film GG), Hotel Bel-Air, Beverly Hills Hotel, and a few others.
just sayin’
shda3wa kl hal tifilsif il zayid? oo shda3wa everyone’s worked up on salfa sij sij ma tswa? loool wallah il 3atheem i rlly enjoyed reading the comments π ma hagait the level of shallowness iw9ilat hal daraja..
Dana, stop embarrassing yourself. It’s obvious you can’t read.
@61: 6ay7een min 3anik il shyookh ya 7athi? Yiswoonik int wa ahilik oo 3asher min amthalik. Talk about biting the hands that feed you! Allah la yigheyar 3alaina inshallah.
Dana, Dana, sweet misguided Dana… where do I begin? Let’s see:
It obviously escaped your limited attention that my comment wasn’t addressed to you in person; I just threw it in there for fun. And this may come as news to you but not everyone is a “worldly traveler” such as yourself and therefore my including the link was for everyone’s benefit, not just you
Now onto your reply:
Marina Hotel is not ripped off from a franchise. It is its own brand so I don’t see why you offered it as a rebuttal. The forthcoming Four Seasons is a legitimate branch/franchise so whoever owns it is besides the point… oh wait, you never had one
The Plaza Athenee in New York – when it first opened!! – was a branch/outpost of the one in Paris. This is obviously no longer the case, as the brand identity of each hotel is now quite different, as you so diligently googled and showed us .. Nonetheless, both are classic, highly regarded 5-star hotels in the best parts of their respective cities
And now we come to Kuwait.. Plaza Athenee is a tacky as shit, cheap-ass hotel in BNEID EL GAR!!!, next to Salam Hospital and assorted 9a3eedi residences. Drive down Istiqlal Expressway and you can’t miss its garish pink neon signage.. And I know for a fact that its owner is a sheikh and that he was indeed confronted with the trademark infringement issues, to which he replied “I don’t care.. sue me!”
Back to the issue at hand and your incredibly weak argument.. Let me first make clear that I don’t buy any of this “fake goods” conspiracy bullshit simply because the first rule of selling fake goods is to do it on the “down low” and not maintain a high profile. Villa Moda advertises heavily and Sheikh Majed is all over the international press.. hardly a scenario for selling fake goods!
But my beef with you, naive Dana, is simply your assertion that being a member of the ruling family automatically confers “good citizen” status, and means that they would never EVER steal or cheat. Newsflash: they are human just like the rest of us, some good and some bad… and the courts are full of cases for and against members of the ruling family on assorted charges
just sayin’
Dana, digay 3ala scope o khawatha o shtikeelihum min kalami π
Dana entay 9aida PERIOD.
OK AFTER ALL THAT TALK
HOW TO CHECK IF MY BAGS ARE REAL OR NOT.
I KNOW SOME BAGS HAVE AUTHENTICITY LABELS BUT HOW TO CHECK GUCCI’S ANYBODY KNOWS?
Authenticity labels can be forged don’t rely on that. Your safest bet is to purchase from an authorized dealer and not off a person or places like eBay.