Hi all, I dipped my toe into the world of online bidding at auction this week, purchasing a set of 4 Vitra panton cone chairs. At least I thought they were Vitra. That's what it said in the description, with a date of manufacture too. The description also said that they hail from one of the swankiest bars in London, the Paramount. Several unique Tom Dixon pieces were also for sale from the very same bar, so foolishly I thought there's no way such a place would cheap out with cheap chinese copies of the cone chair. But now I'm starting to worry. The chairs arrived today and there are absolutely no labels. Are there any sure ways of telling a copy from the licensed product?
http://auctions.lyonandturnbull.com/auction-lot-detail/VERNER-PANTON-%281926-1998%29-FOR-VITRA-FOUR-CONE-CHAIRS%2C-DESIGN/446++++++504+/++200054
Places like that often do purchase replica furniture, but the chairs in the auction house photo look genuine to me. All Chinese replicas that I've seen have been laughably awful; they don't look anything like the real thing.
My Cone chairs are Plus-Linje, so I can't tell you exactly what to look for in a Vitra example, but if you're really worried you could start by measuring your chairs and comparing their dimensions to those published by Vitra.
In the past, my pursuit for Eames La Chaise ended up with extensive communications with Vitra direct. According to what I know from the rep and another person, who is an authorized Vitra dealer in US, all of them informed me that Vitra always have an identification marker of some kind in all their products (stickers, label, medallion, or embossed stamp).
I would always be on the skeptical side when I found no Vitra ID marking. However, to say all of them that has no label is fake is misleading. I have found George Nelson vitra clock without markings (the previous owner peeled off the vitra sticker) which I am 100% sure of its authenticity due to the quality and the clock mechanism.
I would try to contact Vitra direct, if i were you.
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