Counterfeit Hermes

#31
Motomto this is one article from the net, if you do a google of counterfit bags supports terrorism you will get more, I can't copy all of them so this is one. I appologize if it's not true or if I offended you.
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“NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City, long a place where counterfeit watches and fake designer handbags are sold on street corners, is unveiling an ad campaign warning consumers of the human cost of indulging in knockoffs.
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The city will display 50 black, yellow and red posters in tourist spots like Times Square and Chinatown over the next two months with the message, “The Real Price of Counterfeit Goods.”
“When you buy counterfeit goods, you support child labor, drug trafficking, organized crime and even worse,” one version reads. Another says that buyers have cost the city $1 billion per year in lost tax revenue.
The money could have funded “10,000 new cops, 10,000 new firefighters, 10,000 new teachers,” Deputy New York City Mayor Edward Skyler said.
The United States says China is the No. 1 offender when it comes to counterfeit goods. Others include South Korea, Pakistan and India.
The campaign, which starts on Monday, estimates the global trade in counterfeit goods at $650 billion per year including $80 billion in New York City alone.
U.S. authorities have said one group sells counterfeit goods including fake Viagra to support the Lebanese group Hezbollah, which Washington lists as a terrorist organization.
The group behind the 2004 train bombings in Madrid that killed 191 people was partly funded by the sale of illegal compact discs, New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said.
“Do American consumers want their hard-earned money to support terrorism? Or child labor? Or drug trafficking?” Harper’s Bazaar magazine, a co-sponsor of the campaign, said in a statement.
“As frightening as it may seem, that is exactly what is happening whenever a counterfeit DVD, handbag or any other product is knowingly purchased,” the fashion publication said.”Â
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This entry was posted on Sunday, May 18th, 2008 at 2:45 pm and is filed under Fashion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
 
#32
I don't think this one was posted. . . my apologies if I missed it:

http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/crime/20080331/4/2476

Excerpt:

Arguments about lost tax revenues and jobs might not dissuade most individuals from buying a knockoff Gucci bag for $40 when the real thing can go for close to $2,000.

That's why advocates are trying to enlarge the discussion to a broader set of public health and safety issues. The goal is to "make the problem more real to consumers," said Joiner.


For example, according to the Office of Special Enforcement, the buildings housing the wholesale vendors often lack basic fire safety protections such as sprinkler systems. "These buildings violate every code in the book," John Feinblatt, the city's criminal justice coordinator, told the New York Times. "The exit signs are obliterated, or the fire exits are locked or blocked by boxes of merchandise. They're fire traps." In addition, for security reasons, customers are often carefully escorted in and out of buildings and locked into rooms while they search for items, making it a "frightening experience" according to Hyman.


Advocates also argue that knock-off goods, which are impossible to regulate, are also potentially life-threatening. Author Phillips called these "counterfeit killers," citing such examples as fake insulin used by diabetics and fake Lipitor, used by patients with high cholesterol levels. "Talking about medicine that can kill is a very different conversation than talking about the latest Britney Spears album," said Naim.


Anti-counterfeiting observers charge that counterfeit goods are often produced in factories that pay little attention to labor standards. "Raids in Asia in counterfeit plants disclose deplorable conditions that would boggle your mind," Lorne Lipkus of the Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting Network, told CBC News. "We're talking [about] four year old kids mixing chemicals in factories."

More broadly, advocates make a moral argument about counterfeiting, contending that what lies behind a seemingly innocent transaction with a street vendor could be a vast criminal enterprise. "The same groups which smuggle goods are also involved in prostitution, drug dealing and money laundering," Marc Ramondi, spokesman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, told ABC News.
 
#34
oregonfanlisa said:
Anyone who loves handbags can spot a fake of what they love. Your friend will not fool everyone, and she surely won't fool herself.
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Agreed. I went to shopping the other day with my Birkin. I saw a woman has a 35cm "Birkin" in Bright Green colour (so "Bright" that you cannot miss it even miles away) walked around proudly. When she saw me carry the same "Brand", she immediately turned her bag inside out (logo facing her)...funny? Obviously, she knows what she is holding....:P
 
#35
I agree with everyone else. Counterfeit bags are wrong for so many reasons. It seems to me that people who buy fake bags are solely interested in the brand as a status symbol but not the quality and/or the history of the brand. I cannot afford a Birkin or Kelly right now (I am a SAHM) but I will be able to once I return to work full-time. Until then, I am happy to carry my Burberry bag or one of my Prada bags, which are authentic. Until I have my own H bags, I am perfectly content to look at and drool over the gorgeous collections I see here on tPF!
 
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#37
MissMargaux said:
I have one more thing to add if the dark side doesn't make her see reason. Tell her that people will know her Birkin is a fake, and if she has any real jewelry, diamonds, gold, watches, the fake birkin will make all her jewelry and shoes and clothing look like fakes and cheap. Not only will her bag look cheap everything else she is wearing will look cheap and fake.

Plus I agree with everyone else here.
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:yes::yes::yes:
:tup::tup::tup:
 
#38
Gracemnot said:
Oh, no fakes. This is not about protecting the brand. Really, who cares if a company who charges out the ying yang for a purse is ripped off.
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We should care (with or without the child abuse) because if someone can get away with stealing a design from a large company with a very popular design, they can easily get away with stealing from those who operate on a much smaller scale and much lower profile (individual artists, other industries as mentioned before). It's not about caring about Hermes per se, it's about the principle behind stealing someone's ideas and designs, no matter who they are or how they price their goods. That's how I've always viewed the counterfeit industry and why I would never condone the sale or wearing of fakes; the info on child abuse should be the final straw for anyone still considering buying a fake.
 
#39
I TOTALLY agree with you on this, India! I see nothing at all wrong with knock-offs, either copies or ones that have many similarities but also differences. After all, someone once said that all fashion is derivative. Look for example at the LV Alma and the H Bolide! I see no problem whatsoever so long as the bag doesn't have "H" written all over it and tries to make anyone think that it is really an H bag when it is not. Lederer bags are gorgeous and nicely made. Not everyone wants to (or can) spend thousands for a handbag and Lederer bags give one a look very close to H for a fraction of the price.

It is just those fraudsters with the fakes that drive me 'round the bend!!:tdown:


India said:
There IS a difference between a fake and an "inspired-by" bag. I bought my daughter an inspired-by Birkin and myself an inspired-by Constance from Lederer in NYC. They are lovely bags, well made and nice leather. Are they as "good" as Hermes? Of course not! But if one loves the style and can't afford the real thing, they are a good option. They are NOT fakes!!! No "Hermes" anywhere on the bags and there are differences. I couldn't care less that others know they aren't the real deal - I love both styles but can't afford to give my daughter one or buy a Constance for myself. It's a viable option that does not violate trademarks etc.
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#40
I should clarify my comment about people not caring if Hermes gets copied. People perceive counterfeiting of luxury brands to be a victimless crime because the companies charge so much.

We read Deluxe, right? She points this out with the purse parties. Nice suburban women buying fakes because they think, "who cares."
 
#41
I would advise your friend to save her money! The person selling the fakes is laughing all the way to Hermes. |For every fake she sells brings he more dollars to buy herself the authentic Hermes.
One FAKE bag sold at retail price lets the SCAMMERS buy from Hermes proper.
Think about it????
 
#43
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