Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I was excited to finally purchase these backpacks for my soon-to-be 9 year old twins for their birthday this August. I had done some pretty extensive research on them since the end of last year because I noticed a lot of kids at their school were using them and they seemed really efficient and durable, especially for up-er graders. I was going to order the backpacks from J World's official website, but they offered minimal discounts, so the backpacks listed were too expensive for me to purchase two at once. I checked here at Amazon and found several within a reasonable price range, so first I ordered a blue J World Sundance Rolling backpack for my son, but noticed they didn't have the same style in pink for my daughter. I conducted another search via Amazon and found one for her that was just a couple of dollars more, but the order was going to be fulfilled by a different seller. My son's backpack was shipped first and when I received it, I opened up the box and removed the plastic wrapping and inspected the backpack. It was exactly how I expected it to be. Everything matched up with the pictures I viewed on Amazon and the J World official website. I was very pleased with the craftsmanship, vibrant fabric, concave wheels, stitched logos and the pull handle. Everything checkout great! When my daughter's backpack arrived a few days later, I noticed right away that the box it was shipped in didn't have any Amazon logos on it; and when I opened the box, the backpack was not in protective plastic (it looked like it was just thrown in the box). When I pulled the backpack out of the box I noticed some very immediate differences in the craftsmanship compared to my son's backpack: 1) the wheels were totally different- instead of being a chrome-like concave wheel, it had 5-star spoke design 2) The pull handle was stamped with a horizontal black "JW New York" logo instead of a white vertical "J World New York" and the handle had a hard grip instead of softer rubber grip; it would also get stuck trying to push it completely down 3) the fabric look cheap and faded- there was actually a "chalky" fade mark on the front and the pattern didn't match up 4) The info/price tag was a different color- it was blue instead of purple 5) the zippers on the front were busting open in the middle and had crooked stitching 6) instead of the stitched rainbow logo on the front, there was a black "J World" button 7) the hooks for the shoulder straps were attached to a loop instead of being clasped in the molding of the backpack. There were a few more discrepancies, but those were the most noticeable. Looking back at the pictures of the backpack on Amazon, some were of the actual backpack I received mixed with a few of the authentic backpack's pics- so maybe the merchant was aware that these were fake. I noticed the backpack is manufactured in China and unfortunately, their imports are known for having counterfeit items slipping into our marketplace from time to time. Some merchants knowingly sell these items hoping that the consumer won't notice the difference and others have been just as surprised to find out they have sold consumers these counterfeit items because they may look very similar to the true thing. I always do my best to research specs, study pictures on websites or thoroughly check out the actual product before I purchase it for a lower price online especially when it considered a high-end item like this. These backpacks aren't cheap (in quality or price)! And for good reason, because they are made very well, so to read other reviews about how the pull handles didn't work or broke after 4 months of use or how the zippers came apart after several weeks, etc.; that's a red flag that the item received was indeed a fake! I've seen these backpacks a lot at my kids' school and they are usually durable enough that most kids have used them from 4th grade through at least 6th grade and they function just fine- that's why I'm buying them for my twins. Long story short, I returned the pink "fake" backpack to the seller at Amazon and ordered from another website who sold authentic J World backpacks for a great discounted price. I recently, received that backpack and it looks exactly the way I expected it to and just like my son's backpack. I look forward to having my kids enjoy them for at least the next couple of years without any issues. I hope this review is helpful to anyone reading this. It's not J World... their backpack line is top-notch. The fakes being produced in China are giving them a bad name. Thus, my reason for giving the one star to this particular seller on Amazon, but authentic J World backpacks get 5 stars from me any day! Buying anything online can be tricky and I still love using Amazon as my go-to online marketplace, you just have to be careful and take the time to research before you buy so that you can develop a keen eye for spotting fakes like these.