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www.ultrafragrances.com sent me a fake Hypnotic Poison :(

post #1 of 20
11/25/09 at 11:59pm
Thread Starter 
I purchased it during Aug. this year, I was looking for Elixir Des Merveilles and I found it there at a very affordable price... And I've been out of HP for a while and decided to just buy from them too along with the Hermes...

Well, well... When the package arrived everything looked fine, the Hermes is definitely real, it lasts a veeeeery long time on my skin and it smells the way the it smelled before when I tried it from the little samples. And the HP was weird looking, the cellophane was too thick, hum, then the little CD sticker that seals the product when I took it off the sticky side was diiiiiiirty as if it had been picked from the floor of a dive bar... lol. Then the bottle is just weird, I got a weird feeling looking at it... it only says: Hypnotic Poison and underneath it says Dior. That's it... hmmm, the other bottle I had said the name of the perfume, the full name of the designer and name of the city (Paris)... I started looking at everything I inspected the bottle and although the box has the <3> bar code the other longer non-numeric bar code was missing and most important of all... the juice doesn't last more than HALF HOUR! I've owned this perfume before, I know that although it is an EDT it lasts for hours and hours on my skin...

Verdict: it has to be a fake!

A pretty goof fake, but still a fake. It might fool other fools but not me.

I wrote to ultrafragrances about it, and they haven't answered me at all... I'm really sad... I lost $82 of my hard-earned $$ on that crap... And I did it mostly so I wouldn't have to drive to Nordstrom to buy it... It would have been a perfect deal getting both of my perfumes in the mail... But one of them was real the other was not. I have a really weird mixed feeling about ultrafragrances.

Has anyone here ever purchased from this website?...

Can anyone here help me find a reputable website where to order from...? I'm currently needing 24 Faubourg in EDP preferably the biggest bottle.

Thanks in advance!
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post #2 of 20
11/26/09 at 1:01am
Please post some pictures of this bottle, ultrafragrances is an eBay seller with nearly 2000 positive feedback, it's possible that it's grey market, old, or both. Odds are against them deliberately sending you a counterfeit bottle.
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post #3 of 20
11/26/09 at 1:42am
While dior is certainly one of the most heavily forged brands, I would not jump to conclusions. Bottles and packaging can vary from market to market, you may have bought old overstock from Europe or elsewhere. Pictures would indeed help.
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post #4 of 20
11/26/09 at 2:37am
I agree with the good life...it could be old stock. I also bought a bottle of old stock Hypnotic Poison, once and it didn't seem to last long on my skin either.
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post #5 of 20
11/26/09 at 3:51pm
Thread Starter 
I'll post the pics whenever I get the chance to... the ones I took with my phone are not that helpful. But thanks for replying!
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post #6 of 20
11/29/09 at 4:02am
Or even worse, an old, reformulated bottle! :P
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post #7 of 20
12/1/09 at 11:52pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by GourmandHomme View Post

Or even worse, an old, reformulated bottle! :P

hahaha...
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post #8 of 20
12/2/09 at 7:36am
Azahar,
Please let us know how ultrafrangrances.com handles this. Whatever the bottle looks like, you are not satisfied with the fragrance and you have previous experience for comparison. That should be enough for them to swap. If they handle this well and quickly they deserve good reviews and more of our business. If they don't, I'll never buy anything from them.
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post #9 of 20
12/4/09 at 4:48pm
Hello,

I didn't expect my first post to be a financial one, but I simply couldn't resist.
You've never lost anything if you use a CC and dispute normally within 90 days.
If they sent you something you believe to be fraudulent then by all means do what you are doing and ask for a response. If they fail to respond to you, then let them know you will be doing a charge back as a last resort.
I do not recommend doing a charge back but as a last resort you should always pay with any merchandise with a credit card that gives you purchasing power such as the ability to dispute a purchase. If you on the other hand simply paid through Paypal and used a balance or a echeck, well then you don't have many options except to consult with them about the issue and hope a resolution comes from it.

-

I was doing a search looking for a threat about legit Ebay sellers and I came upon this thread. Now on to continue looking.
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post #10 of 20
12/5/09 at 6:35pm
Thread Starter 
They took a while to respond to my e-mail... and this is what they had to say:

Dear L,

All of our products are 100% original, however, if our customers are not happy with their product they may simply return the product for a full refund or exchange it for another. However, in this case we are unable to offer either a replacement or provide you with an RMA#, due to the length of time. All items must be returned within 30 days of receipt in the same new condition with its original packaging.

Sincerely,
The Customer Service Team
Ultra Fragrances Inc.-where luxury meets affordability!
www.UltraFragrances.com

So basically they're telling me tough luck, honey! I seriously don't know what to do...

And I purchased from their website, not through ebay... So I used my debit card to make the purchase... hmmm.
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post #11 of 20
12/5/09 at 7:15pm
I may have missed it, why did you wait 3 months or more until you contacted them?
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post #12 of 20
12/5/09 at 7:49pm
Can't tell if the OP contacted them shortly after and they just now got back to him or what transpired.

If they contacted you within a month and you got that email well then you know what to do.

If it took them 90+ days to contact you well, that's on them and they should fix it.
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post #13 of 20
12/6/09 at 10:38pm
Thread Starter 
Well, the thing is that I've had the bottle there for a while and I have like more than 60 bottles of perfume... I don't wear the same thing everyday... And whenever I spray HP I had that weird feeling, of why is it that the juice doesn't last more than half hour?...

A few weeks ago I started inspecting the bottle and the box, and came to the conclusion that it must be a fake... there's pretty good fakes... it could be mixed with a lot of alcohol, right?...

I've been lazy and haven't taken pics with a proper camera but as soon as I take them, I'll upload them here.

I wrote to them like 2/3 weeks ago and they replied to me like 3/4 days ago.

I guess... I lost my $$... I don't think I want to buy perfume online anymore... I had a horrible experience with 1st perfume, or whatever they're called... they sent me a couple of bottles that were used and even leaking... then I bought Chanel's Cristalle (perfume voile) from an online seller and that crap was most certainly a fake...

I give up.
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post #14 of 20
12/7/09 at 5:33am
I feel your pain. I've ordered things in the past, non cologne related and didn't get around to inspecting them until a much later date.

Just on the general topic, it's amazing how many fake products across the whole spectrum end up getting into the system. Even legit sellers of any product can sometimes get fakes into their system from middle men, third parties, mass distributors etc.

I can only say, you should always pay with a credit card that has an excellent dispute policy such as Amex and then check out your merchandise soon after arrival. If it's fake or you think it's fake you should contact the supplier/seller and inform them of your concerns/issues. If it cannot be resolved, let them know you will be doing a charge back and if they don't want that hit then to work with you. A charge backs cost companies a lot more than you would think. Unfortunately that's the only recourse you have if the company blows you off.
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post #15 of 20
12/7/09 at 9:53am
Hi, another newbie chipping in on this thread I'm just wondering out loud if the HP might be the newest reformulated version, as I've worn HP on and off since 1997 and the current version is noticeably different to the previous formulations. It has a little less vanilla, and is thinner, weaker, with poor longevity. (It must still be somewhat good, though, because I received a compliment on it).

Azahar, the bottle has gone through a number of subtle changes through the years. Google images shows a number of different bottles for the search "hypnotic poison". The current incarnation is presented here on Dior's website:

http://beauty.dior.com/fra/fr/base.h...pnotic-poison/

I'm sorry about your experience, I've never ordered from Ultrafragrances but I've had bad experiences (but no fakes, thankfully) with some reputable online stores and found their return policies to be very discouraging.
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post #16 of 20
11/3/10 at 2:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by chypre View Post

Hi, another newbie chipping in on this thread I'm just wondering out loud if the HP might be the newest reformulated version, as I've worn HP on and off since 1997 and the current version is noticeably different to the previous formulations. It has a little less vanilla, and is thinner, weaker, with poor longevity. (It must still be somewhat good, though, because I received a compliment on it).

Azahar, the bottle has gone through a number of subtle changes through the years. Google images shows a number of different bottles for the search "hypnotic poison". The current incarnation is presented here on Dior's website:

http://beauty.dior.com/fra/fr/base.h...pnotic-poison/

I'm sorry about your experience, I've never ordered from Ultrafragrances but I've had bad experiences (but no fakes, thankfully) with some reputable online stores and found their return policies to be very discouraging.


Hi everybody..i'm a newbie here. and I believe it's the new formulation with the new bottle. It's not fake but very very weak. not at all like the Hypnotic Poison I have always loved. I bought mine from a legit department store. Sadly, it's just not the same. Within an hour ...absolutely no smell.
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post #17 of 20
12/13/10 at 8:43pm
Amazing!! I also received phony/fake cologne from www.ultrafragrances.com. I have ordered from www.ultrafragrances.com in the past and have had no problems but I just received a fake bottle of Carlos Santana cologne for men today 12/13/10.

The funny thing is that I still have the previous bottle of Carlos Santana cologne for men that I ordered about a year ago from the same site. The bottle that arrived today was clearly fake as the scent is obviously different than the previous bottle I purchased. The bottle that arrived today was in bubble wrap and not in the original Carlos Santana cologne box as the other bottle I purchased arrived in. Plus I took some pics to show some obvious things to look for when it comes to fake colognes. Unfortunately, this site won't allow me to post them, but the spray cap looks odd on the fake bottle as if it was not supposed to be on the bottle. Also there was no lid, colognes almost always have a specially designed lid for designer colognes that cost 55-65 bucks a pop.

I'm amazed that a reputable site like www.ultrafragrances.com would risk their reputation like this. I admit the price was very low and competitive compared to any other location that I could find that sold this cologne but selling fake cologne is unacceptable and completely unprofessional. I will never recommend or order from their site again!

Apparently you cannot trust anyone these days, you practically have to watch people make your food to make sure it is not spit in, go to the store in person to make sure the item is what you are actually paying for, etc. etc. etc... If you have recently ordered from them and the item has not arrived yet I recommend to immediately contact them and request a refund as the fragrance is very likely fake/phony.
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post #18 of 20
12/26/10 at 9:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by danroy70 View Post

Amazing!! I also received phony/fake cologne from www.ultrafragrances.com. I have ordered from www.ultrafragrances.com in the past and have had no problems but I just received a fake bottle of Carlos Santana cologne for men today 12/13/10.

The funny thing is that I still have the previous bottle of Carlos Santana cologne for men that I ordered about a year ago from the same site. The bottle that arrived today was clearly fake as the scent is obviously different than the previous bottle I purchased. The bottle that arrived today was in bubble wrap and not in the original Carlos Santana cologne box as the other bottle I purchased arrived in. Plus I took some pics to show some obvious things to look for when it comes to fake colognes. Unfortunately, this site won't allow me to post them, but the spray cap looks odd on the fake bottle as if it was not supposed to be on the bottle. Also there was no lid, colognes almost always have a specially designed lid for designer colognes that cost 55-65 bucks a pop.

I'm amazed that a reputable site like www.ultrafragrances.com would risk their reputation like this. I admit the price was very low and competitive compared to any other location that I could find that sold this cologne but selling fake cologne is unacceptable and completely unprofessional. I will never recommend or order from their site again!

Apparently you cannot trust anyone these days, you practically have to watch people make your food to make sure it is not spit in, go to the store in person to make sure the item is what you are actually paying for, etc. etc. etc... If you have recently ordered from them and the item has not arrived yet I recommend to immediately contact them and request a refund as the fragrance is very likely fake/phony.

I just saw your reply on this thread and I posted earlier regarding my experience with UltraFragrance.com. I'm seriously wondering if they're selling old fragrances or something, because even the D&G EDT (tester) that I purchased, the scent does not last long at all and I've had a bottle of this fragrance before (it was EDT), but it lasted. Not to mention, I went into an Ulta store the day that I purchased this, but sprayed it on me to remember how it smelled on me and that bottle was the EDT as well. So I don't understand why 3 out of the 4 fragrances that I've tried from UltraFragrance.com have not lasted at all.

Not to mention, one fragrance that I ordered, but had to return was an EDP (Zen Gold by Shiseido), I've smelled this fragrance on my skin before. I tried it in a local department store and it smelled great, it lasted for hours. I returned this fragrance due to it fading 30 minutes after I sprayed it on and the fragrance definitely didn't smell the same, it smelled flat. That was the same thing I discovered with the Oui by Lancome that I purchased through UltraFragrance as well. It definitely didn't smell the same as all of the other bottles that I'd purchased from the mall.

I truly hope someone can provide some insight, because based on my two experiences with UltraFragrance, I will never do anymore future business with them. I don't want to spend my money to buy a fragrance that does not smell identical to what I'm expecting and when you know certain fragrances have staying power, and then you purchase from this company and all of their fragrances don't deliver the same results, it is disappointing.
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post #19 of 20
4/25/11 at 6:50pm
Thread Starter 
I bought me some HP from Nordstrom like a week ago, and I made a comparison between that one bottle I bought from UltraFragrances and the real Dior I bought from Nordtrom and the one I bought online is super weak, and has a funky smell now that it's been over a year since I purchased it. I couldn't be more certain that it was indeed a fake what I got from ultrafragrances! DON'T BUY FROM THEM!
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post #20 of 20
2/7/12 at 3:52am
azahar...

If you want to take your complaint a step further and help prevent this company from scamming others and/or make one last attempt to get reimbursed:

1) google search "BBB San Jose, CA"
2) click on the first site that pops up "Better Business Bureau serving in Santa Clara, San Benito....etc."
3) you'll end up on the specific Better Business Bureau site that serves the area in which Ultra Fragrances' warehouse resides. 4) enter in the Business Name search box "Ultra Fragrances Inc"

there should only be one business that pops up. you know you found the right one if the address says:
\t1580 Oakland Rd #C108
\tSan Jose, CA 95131-2441

FILE A CLAIM! if this doesn't ensure another chance to recover your money, i don't know what will. it really is worth a try. i took a look at the claim page and it should only take minutes to fill out. Good luck! sorry to hear about your experience, but im also very thankful that you spoke out about this issue. i was about to buy a bunch of stuff from them, but decided to surf the web to see if i could find any dirt on these guys. didnt take me long, unfortunately.
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Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Internet Shopping and City Shopping Guides › www.ultrafragrances.com sent me a fake Hypnotic Poison :(