Buying Guide, How to

Totême real vs fake: labels, style numbers, hardware and the seller questions

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Buying Guide, How to

Totême real vs fake: labels, style numbers, hardware and the seller questions

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Totême is copied because its pieces are simple, which makes them easy to imitate badly. The monogram silk scarf, the scarf jacket, the T-Lock bags and the Signature hoops are the styles that turn up most often as counterfeits. This guide lists what the genuine pieces have, what the copies get wrong, and the questions to ask a second-hand seller before you pay. It is written from the pieces Luxury Handbags has authenticated, and it describes only what can be checked without the item in a laboratory.

Key facts

  • Every genuine piece carries a style number in the format season-category-fabric, for example 264-WAL0134-LE0206, on the care label and the product page
  • The Luxury Handbags reference on every listing (TOT- followed by that style number and the shade) lets you check a piece against the brand’s own numbering
  • Bags: the T-Lock turns through a slot and sits flush; the interior is lined, the hardware is engraved, and the dust bag and care card come in the box
  • Fine jewellery: stamped hallmarks and a 750 mark for 18kt gold; fashion jewellery: the brand name stamped on the clasp, and on the post of the earrings
  • Shoes: leather-lined, leather-soled, size stamped inside in EU numbers, made in Italy marked on the insole, sometimes the sole
  • Luxury Handbags authenticates every piece before dispatch; a deep discount from an unknown seller is the first warning

Labels and style numbers

Genuine ready-to-wear carries a woven brand label in the neck, a care label with the composition in several languages and a style number of the form 264-WRO0334-LE0235. The first three digits are the season code, the letters after the hyphen the category (WRO for outerwear, WAL for bags, WAS for shoes, WJQ and WJF for fashion and fine jewellery), the tail the fabric code. Copies get the format wrong more often than the logo. The composition on the label should match the brand’s page; a coat sold as wool with a polyester care label is the end of the conversation.

Bags

The T-Lock is a metal T that turns through a slot and locks flush with the flap; on a copy it is loose, and often painted and glued. The leather on the genuine bags is calf, cow and lamb with a lining in microsuede, and leather on some styles, the seams are even and the edges are painted cleanly. The belted totes fold and cinch with a working buckle. Every bag ships with a dust bag and a care card, and the newer styles carry the style number inside. The bag guide explains each line so you know what the original should look like.

Shoes

Genuine pairs are made in Italy, with leather linings, insoles and soles on almost every style and the size stamped in EU numbers inside. The set-back heel on the Contour, Bar and Classic lines is a shape copies rarely get right. The box, the dust bags and the care instructions are in the box on a new pair.

Jewellery

The fine pieces are recycled 18kt gold and sterling silver made in Arezzo, with stamped hallmarks; the fashion pieces are recycled brass with 24kt gold plating, and rhodium plating on the silver pieces, handmade in Italy, and carry the brand stamp on the clasp, and on the post of the earrings. The house says on its pages that small differences in colour and finish are part of the hand finishing, so an uneven finish alone is not a tell; a clasp with no stamp is.

The seller questions

Ask for the style number and check it against the brand’s site and against a Luxury Handbags listing. Ask for a photograph of the care label and of the inside of the clasp. Ask where the piece was bought and whether the receipt exists. A seller of a genuine piece answers all three in a minute. A price far below retail on a current Signature, a stock photograph instead of the actual item, and a story about outlet stock are the three most reliable warnings.

What Luxury Handbags does

Luxury Handbags buys through authorised channels, authenticates every piece before dispatch and prints the reference on the product page. If a piece arrives and you doubt it, the returns protocol applies. There is no Totême outlet and no official resale programme, so the only guaranteed-authentic routes are the brand’s stores and site, its stockists and retailers like Luxury Shoes .

“TOTEME is a fashion house rooted in Swedish sensibilities, modern aspirations and the notion of style,” the house writes on toteme.com. “With an appreciation for women’s many roles and how pieces are worn in practice, we create emblematic designs with an emphasis on materiality and shape.”

Frequently asked questions

How can I tell if a Totême bag is real?

The T-Lock turns through a slot and sits flush, the leather and lining are as the product page states, the seams and edge paint are clean, the hardware is engraved, and the dust bag and care card are in the box. Check the style number against the brand’s site.

Do Totême clothes have a serial number?

A style number rather than a serial: season code, category code and fabric code, for example 264-WRD0398-FB0162, on the care label. It should match the product page.

Is Totême jewellery hallmarked?

The fine jewellery is, with a 750 mark for 18kt gold and stamped hallmarks. The fashion jewellery carries the brand stamp on the clasp, and on the post of the earrings.

Where are real Totême shoes made?

In Italy, with leather linings and soles and the EU size stamped inside. The product page states it.

Is a Totême piece at half price from a marketplace fake?

Not necessarily, but it is the profile of most fakes we see. Ask for the label, the style number and the receipt before paying.

Does Luxury Handbags authenticate?

Yes, every piece, before dispatch, with the reference printed on the listing.

Read next

Where to buy Totême The bag guide The jewellery guide Glossary

More Totême guides

Every Totême page by Luxury Shoes ’s fashion editor Gemma Deeks: Is it a luxury brand?, How to style, Brands like Totême, The edit, Who is Totême?, History timeline, Size guide, Shoe size guide, Price guide, Where to buy, Sale, Review, Materials and care, Glossary, Who wears it, vs The Row, vs Khaite, Capsule wardrobe, The Signatures, Fall winter 2026, Spring summer 2026, Coats, Scarf jackets and coats, Jackets and blazers, Shearling, Knitwear, Dresses, Trousers, Jeans and denim, Skirts, Tops and shirts, Swim and beachwear, Leather, Bag guide, T-Lock bags, Belted tote, Shoe guide, Boots, Flip flops, Sneakers, Jewellery guide, Sunglasses, Scarves, Black, Camel, beige and brown, White and ivory.

Sources and method

Checked on 18 September 2026 by Gemma Deeks, fashion editor at Luxury Shoes . Product facts, the compositions, care lines, dimensions, heel heights and country of manufacture, are the brand’s own product-page text; counts, prices and price ranges are Luxury Shoes ’s live catalogue on that date and move with stock; the founders’ biography and the house history come from the brand’s own pages and the press articles listed below, each read on the date above; the size scales are the brand’s own. Where a claim could not be checked against one of these it was left out, and where the fitting room is giving its own advice the page says so.

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About Gemma Deeks

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Totême materials and care: wool, cashmere, silk, leather and jewellery
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Older Totême review: quality, fit and where the money goes furthest

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