Fake leather, fake people: AI sellers generate numerous complaints

BY KERRY TOMLINSON, AMPYX NEWS

After more than three decades of artisan leather work, Grace ---smiling into the camera --- is ready to hang up her tool belt. But her face is fake. She's created by AI, designed to lure you into spending money. And it works.

Some shady online shops have found a successful formula, using AI along with other tactics to keep their business going despite numerous complaints.

Watch here:

Amazing Grace?

The ad pops up in your feed, telling a bittersweet story. Leatherworker Grace is shutting down her workshop after 34 years. And you can own a piece of her legacy.

"Our handcrafted leather bags are not just accessories, they're statements of style and quality," says her post.

"Each one tells a story, not just of leather and design, but of dedication, passion and the journey we've been on together," says her ad.

On her website, Grace offers big discounts on her leather bags, up to 80% off. Bags once listed as high as $695 now sell for $139.95. Others go as low as $40. People snapped them up in orders of two, three and four bags at once.

"It was this beautiful older woman claiming to have a shop with her husband, and they were retiring and closing up shop. And the bags themselves looked like they were high-quality bags," said customer Lora Munson. "It just seemed like, 'Oh, this is a great opportunity to buy a beautiful, handmade, genuine bag.'“

FALL FROM Grace

But the Grace in these ads and profiles is fake. Deepfake analysis shows the pictures are highly likely generated by AI.

In addition, Grace's voice, as heard in video ads, is more than 99% likely to be computer-generated, according to analysis.

Many customers say their bags are bogus as well. Munson said the bags she received are plastic, poor quality, with "Made in China" tags. Not leather, not hand-sewn, not artisan.

"It felt like they were vinyl," Munson said in an interview. "It was just very, very disappointing."

"They come packaged in a canvas bag that says, 'Grace's Bags.' And the canvas bag was a higher quality bag than the actual bags," Munson added.

LONG LIST OF COMPLAINTS

Other reviewers echo the same in comments on the complaint site Trustpilot.

"If I could give zero stars I would. Not leather, nothing like the image or description on website," wrote one reviewer.

"Total trash vinyl not leather," wrote another. "Smell horrible.”

"It is NOT quality leather by ANY means and REALLY smelled as if some small creature had died in it," wrote a third.

Not Real Leather

Munson bought three of them for about $140.

She did not know that her Grace was one of many profiles with similar pictures, profile names, sites, and promises.

Munson contacted Grace's Bags to get her money back, but says they told her ‘No refunds.'

Her options were to pay out of her own pocket to ship the bags --- tracked --- to a warehouse in China at a cost of around $50, she said. Or she could get a little money back. They first offered 20%, then 40%, and finally 60%, according to Munson. This is similar to experiences described by other customers in complaints online.

This kind of scheme could convince many people not to return the bags or complain to PayPal or the credit card companies. This in turn would keep the companies running the payment and shipping infrastructure from noticing returns and complaints.

P.U.

Grace's Bags did admit in an email to Munson that the bags are made of "P.U. leather." P.U. stands for polyurethane, a chemical compound like plastic. P.U. leather is not real leather.

"Your website says it is genuine leather. This is not genuine leather," Munson said with frustration.

FAILING GRADE

The Better Business Bureau gave graces bags an 'F' rating for ad problems and for not responding to dozens of customer complaints.

Meanwhile, more profiles appeared, and the ads continued.

Unhappy customers said online that they tried to post comments on Grace's Bags Facebook pages to warn others, but their comments were deleted.

They moved to a separate page where they could show pictures of their poorly made non-leather bags and send out the alert.

NEGATIVE REVIEWS

Lora posted a one-star review on Trustpilot along with many others.

"Michaela" from Grace's Bags responded, doubling down on the lies.

"I want to assure you every bag I make is crafted from genuine leather," she wrote. "All of my bags are hand-stitched and made with real leather, not vinyl."

Madarha Harris of Georgia also posted a one-star review after buying what she believed to be two hand-crafted leather bags as gifts. The bags that arrived are synthetic, not leather, she said.

"Oh, no," Harris said in an interview. "This is something that you would get from, like, the Dollar Tree that cost $1.25. That's probably how much it cost to make it."

Michaela responded to Harris as well.

"I want to assure you that Grace's Bags is a legitimate small business that is fully based in the United States," Michaela wrote. "Each bag is handcrafted by me personally with love and care, and I take great pride in providing high-quality leather bags."

PAYPAL TACTIC

Grace's Bags representatives on Trustpilot also directed unhappy customers to an email address for a site that sounds like it's a PayPal connection. The home page reads, "PAYPAL EXPRESS SUPPORT, Express Contact for PayPal.” But the site is actually gracesbagsonline.com.

When you click the “Contact us” button, you go to a page with the title “Express Contact for PayPal.” This page says the following, which could discourage people from filing complaints with the real PayPal and bring negative attention to the company:

Open a case? Please wait a second!

We are very sorry that you have reached this point! If you are not satisfied, neither are we! We truly apologise if you have not received a response from our support team, or if you were not satisfied with the response you received from us!

Please contact us at paypal@gracesbagsonline.com and let us know what's going on! This email is for the very high priority cases like yours here! We would love to find out what is going on and solve this case as soon as possible!

Please remember that there is a MUCH higher chance that you will get your money back if you contact us and explain your problems. PayPal cases are not the quickest way to resolve this. You will have to wait at least 14-21 days to get a decision from PayPal.

LACK OF Grace?

Ampyx News sent many messages to the contact email address on the Grace's Bags site asking why they're deceiving customers. But the company never responded.

We tried every email and number we found connected with the company with no response.

The only answer came when we contacted Grace's Bags as a customer.

They sent a message back as Angel, sending "warm regards on behalf of Grace."

"Grace is indeed real," Angel wrote, "and personally designs and handcrafts the bags."

Can you talk to the real Grace? No.

"Grace is currently out on a cruise with her husband, enjoying some well-earned time off after all her hard work," Angel said.

META RESPONSE

Customers report seeing ads for Grace's Bags on social media sites Facebook and Instagram, both a part of Meta.

Ampyx News contacted Meta multiple times for information about the ads and customer complaints. Meta never responded.

SHIPPING FROM CHINA

Munson's return label shows the address of a warehouse in China run by Day One, a company based in Ningbo, China, that sources and ships Chinese products for various businesses.

Day One videos show workers packaging products in a large warehouse. But there is no sign of Grace nor an artisan leather workshop.

A Day One representative told us, they're not Grace's Bags, they're a fulfillment house for other companies. They say they can't confirm that Grace's Bags is a client, but if they're using a Day One warehouse address, they likely are.

As far as customers complaints about fake ads, Day One first said, "We don’t concern ourselves with any front-end operations of any client stores." Later, they said, "Since it has been brought to our attention, it will be looked into."

COMPANY ADMISSION

At one point, during our investigation, a ripple of change went through the Grace's Bags ecosystem. Some sites and profiles removed mentions of leather, though other accounts still showed the claims.

Grace's Bags still tap-danced in company responses on Trustpilot, but finally admitted publicly, "Our bags are made from PU leather, a material designed to replicate the appearance and texture of genuine leather, and we regret if this wasn't clearly communicated."

All this leaves customers holding the bag. And the bill.

wave of retirement

Grace is not the only AI artisan to claim a bittersweet leather shop shutdown.

There is Dorothy of Dorothy's Bags, who looks like Grace, also going out of business after 34 years. Barbara of Barbara's Bags uses the same 34-year story. So does Mei Lin of Mei Lin Bags, another AI fake.

Computer-generated Sophia is clearing out her leather bags made with love, as is Victoria, after 40 years of artisan work.

AI-generated Paul Richard is hanging up his leather half-apron after 27 years with a sale on bags. His picture is also represented to be Erik Olofsson, with the same story and a very similar leather bag site. The same picture shows up as Jules Olivier, with the same story, but in French.

AI Henry is closing his boot workshop after 30 years. David is shutting down his shop after 45 years of "crafting high-quality leather shoes."

Mary is also an AI creation. She's closing her gem workshop with deep discounts to the public. Another AI artisan has announced his small wooden puzzle business must close.

It's a story that sells.

What can you do?

Here are some tips to remember when you see an enticing ad online:

Check out the company and the product before you buy.
Look for a real physical address and a phone number. Remember that some shady sellers will put fake address and phone info on their sites. Grace's Bags included a phone number on one site that led to a completely different company.
Don't believe every ad, image, comment or review. Pictures do deceive. Video reviewers can be paid to lie.
Beware of fake reviews. Some five-star reviews for Grace's Bags claimed they had received real leather bags, even after the company admitted publicly that their bags are made of a polyurethane material.
Look for complaints online. They're still coming in on Grace's Bags.
Use a credit card to make the purchase rather than a debit card because you have more protections.
Cancel or dispute the charge if you get a fake product. You could get your money back and the seller could face trouble with the credit card company or other payment platform, which make is harder for them to stay in business.

As far as Grace's Bags shutting down as claimed? The sites are still up in January, at least five months after the company started running ads.