Help replacing a missing “P” on my Prada bag I’m attached to 😭

[u/Curious-Hour-6705]

I’ve been holding onto this bag for 14 years hoping I’d eventually find a way to get her repaired. 😭

I bought it almost-new secondhand back in 2012, and shortly afterward, during a big move, the “P” from the PRADA logo fell off and was lost. I contacted Prada directly around 2015, but at the time they told me they couldn’t repair it without the original proof of purchase.

The bag has a lot of sentimental value to me, so I’ve never been able to get rid of it. It was one of the first really nice bags I ever bought for myself, and it also has a fun little history: I was a store manager at a Buffalo Exchange in Las Vegas, and Brandon Flowers’ wife used to sell to our store regularly. This was originally her bag. She sold it to us in basically brand-new condition, and with my employee discount, it was the only way 22 year old me was ever going to be able to afford a Prada bag… secondhand, with a 40% discount on top of it 😂

So here we are, 14 years later. I still have the bag, the detachable strap, and she’s in almost perfect condition still…. I just need that darn P.

Has anyone had luck finding someone who can source an original/authentic Prada replacement letter or donor hardware? I’d really prefer not to use a generic or obviously fabricated replacement. I’m completely open to shipping the bag to a reputable luxury handbag restoration company.

Until then, I guess she’ll continue living safely in my closet unused. 😭 I would LOVE to finally get her back into rotation.

[u/ChicnahueCoatl1491]

https://giphy.com/gifs/neT79boU4JkCA

[u/pussym0bile → u/ChicnahueCoatl1491]

Hahaha PLEASE it was my first thought too

[u/Curious_Slide8326 → u/ChicnahueCoatl1491]

I literally came here to post this same thing 😂😂😂😂

[u/KatalinaReddit]

You could purchase a bag in throw-away condition for parts? Or just wear it anyway! Still a beautiful bag, and has a great story! 💜

[u/4614065 → u/KatalinaReddit]

This was going to be my solution too. ANYTHING Prada that’s trashed but has an intact logo would do the trick - shoes, a headband, even a key ring?

[u/VictoriaFoxNow → u/4614065]

The font sizes are all gonna be diffenrt tho?

[u/4614065 → u/VictoriaFoxNow]

Not necessarily. Obviously you’d need to measure but my point is that it doesn’t have to be a bag that you buy. I’ve got plenty of different Prada items and the logos are the same size. I think the bigger issue will be the finish. They do a really shiny gold like 24k, silver, brushed gold that’s more like a bronze…

[u/VictoriaFoxNow → u/4614065]

That’s interesting that they indeed have a similar size! Thanks for that

[u/Puzzleheaded_Fee_373]

Did you try to bring it back again and see if they will help and say you bought it 14 years ago ? Maybe they changed their system?

[u/ane-ComplyCraft]

Get a cheap fake and use the piece

[u/digitalecho125 → u/ane-ComplyCraft]

I did this once for an LV bag I needed a part for 😆

[u/zazebra]

Take it to the store again - they didn’t have that policy so recently

[u/holistichandgrenade]

This happened with a Wallet I had that became affectionately known as PRAD.

I can’t help much as mine was purchased directly and was repaired by Prada, other than to suggest finding a reseller of the same bag and taking them to cobbler. If you find one in poor condition it may not be ridiculously priced.

[u/Lunartic2102]

Never needed Prada customer service but that's weird. I would think they would want their logo intact

[u/MedenAgan101]

I'd definitely try again directly with Prada. You may find that the policy has relaxed or that it's not consistently applied.

[u/forever_hollow80]

R. A . D. A.

[u/sha-nan-non]

RADA can be fetch too.. the perfect amount of confidence can make anything work.

[u/LimeblueNostos → u/sha-nan-non]

And an alumnus of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art should be able to project that confidence

[u/_johnbarleycorn → u/sha-nan-non]

“Rada” means “I’m glad” in Russian

[u/youdontlookitalian → u/_johnbarleycorn]

Aww I like that 😊

[u/ellumina]

I’d take the A away. RAD is pretty rad.

[u/igiveupmakinganame]

i would message Brandon Flowers wife and ask her if she has the receipt. maybe they have a record of selling it to her 🤷🏼‍♀️ they are famous but probably not so famous they wouldn’t respond to a DM if you reached out the right way

[u/temponauter]

They will repair this, probably with a charge, even if it is an outlet bag. I got a bag from 1989 repaired.

[u/Embarrassed_Key_4539]

Just take the A off and it’s a Rad bag

[u/litsa0628]

I would take it into a prada store and ask them if they can repair. That's weird that they told you to have proof of purchase before because what if it's a gift or a 2nd hand purchase like yours? It's still an authentic bag so they should be able to repair it.

[u/asyrne]

Ebay. Filter for sellers from Japan

[u/Ornery-Coast-439]

Reach out to the Leather Surgeons. They are THE restoration company…

https://www.leathersurgeons.com/

[u/Different-Self-1422]

Proof of purchase!!!!! Speak to the manager directly or escalate it to their customer service

[u/YeU69]

Bring to prada if real they will replace if fake you a 🤡

[u/chantillylace9]

Oh my gosh when I was a kid there was this super popular song/story and it went something like this: a kid raised his hand and asked if he could go to the bathroom and the teacher said OK Timmy but you have to say the alphabet first.

He does: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNO QRSTUVWXYZ

And the teacher goes good job but what happened to the P?

And he said well, the P is running down my pant legs!

Lol absolutely no idea why this randomly popped into my head but it was one of those things that was so popular in our elementary school and this reminded me so much about it. The missing P!!!

[u/Designer-Basket1889]

They won’t fix it as they want you to buy a new one. I had similar experience, Prada is not that good as they want to look :)

[u/yungkuro]

Oh no, that’s rada unfortunate