Counterfeit Carriers

There are many quality baby carriers on the market but unfortunately there are some counterfeit carriers as well that you need to be careful of. Ergobaby carriers have long been knocked off and so if purchasing one it is important that you go through a trusted retailer. 

 

Here is a counterfeit carrier that we have seen a few times now, the Ergobaby Omni 360 carrier, and more recently, the Ergobaby Omni Breeze. They look legitimate and even come in the box with tags on BUT they are counterfeit knock offs. They are usually purchased through Marketplace and are sold as brand new carriers. 

 

Here are some photos showing the difference between a legitimate Ergobaby Omni Breeze 360 carrier (grey) and a counterfeit Ergobaby Omni Breeze 360 carrier (black and navy). The differences are only noticeable if you know what to look for but you often won't know unless you have a real version to compare it to. 

 

Here are some of the noticeable and not so noticeable differences: 

 

  • The colours of the lines on the velcro are different and the shape is slightly different

ergobaby-counterfeit-waistband-velcro.jpg 

  • The velcro section is shorter on the counterfeit version 

ergobaby-waistband-velcro-width.jpg 

  • The buckles that clip are almost identical but the ones that do not unclip (like the ones pictured) are slightly different

ergobaby-buckles.jpg 

  • The logo on the little bag is slightly different

ergobaby-logo.jpg  

  • The counterfeit carrier is lighter in weight than the legitimate Ergobaby carrier.

 

  • The holes in the mesh on the carrier are a different shape. With the counterfeit carrier the mesh on the front of the panel is circular, on the legitimate version it is oval. Then this is the opposite way around on the shoulder straps. You can also see that the sliders on the counterfeit carrier are fitted upside down.

 Ergobaby Mesh Counterfeit Ergobaby Mesh Counterfeit 

  • The webbing on the shoulder straps is slightly harrower on the counterfeit carrier.

Ergobaby Webbing 

  • The padding on the waistband is slightly shorter on the Counterfeit carrier.

Ergobaby Waistband Length difference 2 

  • On the warning label on the counterfeit carrier there is a small grammatical error with the word ‘COOL AIR’ being written as ‘COOLAIR’ with no gap between the words.

Ergobaby label

* Please note that on the Ergobaby Omni 360 the coloured lines do overlap, they just don’t overlap on the Ergobaby Omni Breeze.

 

 

So what is wrong with a counterfeit carrier, they do the same job right? 

 

They have not been safety tested, the dyes have not been tested to be safe, the buckles are not safety tested. Basically NOTHING about them has been tested to ensure that they are safe for your baby. There is a chance that they are fine and you might have no issues with it, BUT would you really want to risk it?

 

If you have bought an Ergobaby Carrier through Marketplace I encourage you to compare it to our photos and then make your own decision from there if you still wish to use it. You can contact Ergobaby directly and they can confirm for you whether or not it is a genuine Ergobaby carrier. 

 

How do you avoid buying a counterfeit carrier?

 

Buy through a trusted business. If buying second hand ask where they purchased it from and ask for proof of purchase. While it is in our nature to try and find the best price for something, sometimes it is best to save that bit longer to get something better quality and that is legitimate.