Official or unofficial? How to check your first K-pop album in South Africa, from PurpleHoney
We asked PurpleHoney, a K-pop album store in South Africa, what a first-time buyer should know before ordering.
The question
For a fan buying a first K-pop album in South Africa, what is the difference between an official album and an unofficial item, and how can they check?
The difference between an official item and Unofficial item is fairly simple. Official k-pop merch is directly from South Korea and distributed through the k-pop groups companies/agencies. PurpleHoney sells Official k-pop albums which are directly imported from South Korea and each album has a KOMCA sticker with a serial number that authenticates itself, as well as we purchase from verified suppliers who support the Korean Hanteo Charts! Unofficial/hand-made is most of the time made by fans and designed by fans! PurpleHoney also sells hand-made merch which we design and get made locally! To differentiate between the 2, on each product on PurpleHoney's website, there is a product description which states whether the item is official or Unofficial!
Context
PurpleHoney is an online store in South Africa that sells official K-pop albums and merch, along with fan merch it designs and has made locally. K-Pop Arena sent its team one question, and the owner answered it in K-Pop Arena's short written interview. This note is not sponsored: K-Pop Arena is not paid for it and earns nothing from sales.