LV made in India?

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#47
charleston-mom said:
I'm going to just throw this out there because I was born in India and lived there when I was young. It's been my experience that Indian workers are far more hardworking than the French. I don't think quality will go down in any way.

I am concerned about price point though and would be very concerned about what kind of wage they pay. This could be a wonderful living wage for a lot of people in India, to feed their families, etc. The people in India, by and large, are very well educated (indeed, their schools are better than the schools in North Carolina in terms of math, science, humanities, history). It's immportant to remember that while the wage may seem very low to us, the cost of living is far lower as well. If they pay a decent living wage, please realize this could save lives, families, provide schooling for children, etc.

Don't necessarily assume though that there is an automatic exploitation of workers. What you may have is families and lives changed and made better by having a job that can support your family, send your children to school, etc.


The poverty in India is terrible. The thought of people having money to care for their families, get health care, schooling, etc., (for someone who has lived there and seen the poverty first hand) might be a really wonderful thing for some of these people.
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It may actually be a very good thing to happen for the people of that region.

In India, the cow is a sacred animal and the people who do leatherwork (tanning/making leather goods) usually come from a caste generally known as the 'Untouchables' and occupy the lowest place in the Indian caste hierarchy. These people are generally disadvantaged socially, and LV is probably doing a good deed in providing employment opportunities for such a sector of people.
 
#48
Ugh, sorry, but then I will move on to another brand. I ONLY want made in France ( Even when my mother gave me the made in spain agenda as a gift I was disappointed), allthough made in italy is ok for accessoires. The made in france is a part of the LV dream which is also what we buy into when we buy. We buy a piece of "french luxury" I don't even want to think of India when getting goods like this! Also I don't see how they can justify prices if they do not intend to keep the same wages in India as across the world. :yucky: :yucky: :yucky: :yucky: :yucky: :yucky: :yucky: :yucky:
 
#49
Quote:
Originally Posted by bvbirdygirl
lower wage workers= lower quality!

...in regards to the response to the above post below:

medhavini said:
Beg to disagree. Workers are workers and their degree of skill does not depend on the country they come from. If production standards are kept, the country of manufacture should not be an issue.
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Yes, that may be true...but people are honestly less likely to buy something that says - made in China versus made in France - for example, or even made in India!!

There is most definitely a difference in quality in things made in China versus France for example, and with the prices WE PAY and the PRICES always INCREASING - for most, seeing LV made in India is the same as being made in China.

I am not talking about the quality of the workers, I am sure workers in India are hard workers - outsourcing is so common these days, hell you call an american company and their customer service has been outsourced to India!!!

....If this is true, I hope their prices come down - but we know the truth, NOT LIKELY!!!!!
 
#50
itsgood2beme said:
Yes, that may be true...but people are honestly less likely to buy something that says - made in China versus made in France!!

There is most definitely a difference in quality in things made in China versus France for example, and with the prices WE PAY and the PRICES always INCREASING - for most, seeing LV made in India is the same as being made in China.

I am not talking about the quality of the workers, I am sure workers in India are hard workers - outsourcing is so common these days, hell you call an american company and their customer service has been outsourced to India!!!

....If this is true, I hope their prices come down - but we know the truth, NOT LIKELY!!!!!
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ITA. It's the mental picture that comes with the label. France and Italy, to me imply luxury, more so actually than a product made in US or UK. It's probably the mental association with couture items.
 
#52
I love LV like anyone else. In fact, it is my favorite brand. But I have often wondered where their bags are made, even though most say France or USA....and what they pay the craftsmen and women. So they are slated to open a factory in India, huh?

I can honestly say that I am not surprised in the least bit. As I said, I love LV, but for some reason I often feel as though they have always used lower waged workers for their goods. I am a little disappointed!
 
#53
Other than the issues that everyone has already brought up -
Lower quality
Unequal pay across countries.

They have shown that in many cases the factories in third world contries open up after hours to produce fakes. So after producing Coach or whatever for 8, 10 or 12 hours they stop for a moment, load up lower quality materials and start up again and produce the same bag, but fake. Quality control definitely goes out the window. When this happens, I will stick 100% to Chanel.
 
#54
bvbirdygirl said:
uh. if thats true.. goodbye eluxury!
im most DEFINITELY hand selecting my bags at the boutique.
no offence.. but YUCK. saying made in india as as good as saying made in china...
lower wage workers= lower quality!
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Same here, bye eluxury. It's not like the ones made in India are going to be cheaper. So ultimately my money is going to the corporation and not to the workers... no way
 
#55
Does this mean after hours factories producing fakes only exist in Asia and doesn't come from France or Italy? Hard to believe that the European world is without blame. Synopsis is the same. Huge conglomerates outsourcing there businesses to other parts of the world to manufacture their products. Looks more like global servitude. JMO
 
#57
queenmab said:
Other than the issues that everyone has already brought up -
Lower quality
Unequal pay across countries.

They have shown that in many cases the factories in third world contries open up after hours to produce fakes. So after producing Coach or whatever for 8, 10 or 12 hours they stop for a moment, load up lower quality materials and start up again and produce the same bag, but fake. Quality control definitely goes out the window. When this happens, I will stick 100% to Chanel.
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...So after producing Coach or whatever for 8, 10 or 12 hours they stop for a moment, load up lower quality materials and start up again and produce the same bag, but fake....wow, I hope that isn't true!!!
 
#58
charleston-mom said:
I'm going to just throw this out there because I was born in India and lived there when I was young. It's been my experience that Indian workers are far more hardworking than the French. I don't think quality will go down in any way.

I am concerned about price point though and would be very concerned about what kind of wage they pay. This could be a wonderful living wage for a lot of people in India, to feed their families, etc. The people in India, by and large, are very well educated (indeed, their schools are better than the schools in North Carolina in terms of math, science, humanities, history). It's immportant to remember that while the wage may seem very low to us, the cost of living is far lower as well. If they pay a decent living wage, please realize this could save lives, families, provide schooling for children, etc.

Indian people have a VERY strong work ethic when they are able to get jobs (my father was a surgical missionary there). I would venture to say their work ethic is far stronger than the typical work ethic for the French. Please don't judge an entire country.

I do realize that the price increases have been terrible lately for LV; perhaps this might help with the 3 increases in a year thing . . . perhaps not. We wouldn't love LV as much if the luxury wasn't associated with it (if we're honest).

Don't necessarily assume though that there is an automatic exploitation of workers. What you may have is families and lives changed and made better by having a job that can support your family, send your children to school, etc.

As far as exploitation too, most LV SAs that I know have second jobs due to the fact that the wages they are paid are not a living wage. The one I knew in Charlotte prior to my SA now had to quit because her salary could be higher working as a legal assistant.

The poverty in India is terrible. The thought of people having money to care for their families, get health care, schooling, etc., (for someone who has lived there and seen the poverty first hand) might be a really wonderful thing for some of these people.

I know the outsourcing for cell phones has changed the lives of Indian woman tremendously for the better. They have more say in their lives, more power, less need to marry young for money. While we tend to look at this as a sweatshop type thing, most LV factories are clean, bright and well-maintained. The cell phone companies in India have really nice working conditions for their employees (by and large) and it is a godsend to them. India and China, while both being in Asia, per se, are VERY different countries.
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I am so glad you pointed these things out, ITA!
 
#59
An article from the LVMH Website - from April of last year, mentions the very close ties for Louis Vuitton with India, dating back to the 1920s, enough that they had an exhibition at the main Paris store. Louis Vuitton has a strong history with India dating back since almost the beginning of the company.

I am not Indian, but I will say it is unfair to compare India and China as being the "same" somehow. They are VERY different countries.

India has been famous worldwide since the time they were occupied by Great Britain for beautiful leatherwork - saddles in particular. Their saddles and harnesses are still well sought after by many people in Great Britain who ride, both on a professional level and for hobby.
Here's the article from the LVMH website:

Louis Vuitton and India have enjoyed close ties ever since the 1920s, when the famous Parisian trunkmaker created extraordinary pieces of luggage and bags for some of the country's greatest Maharajahs. More recently, Louis Vuitton opened two stores in India, first in New Delhi in 2003, then in Mumbai in 2004.
The adventure continues today with "India of the senses", the second exhibition held in the brand new Espace Louis Vuitton gallery. We see contemporary India as never before through the eyes of a dozen French and Indian artists. Photography, video, sound and visual montages, reinvented objects… in very different registers, each of the works assembled for the exhibition testifies to incredibly fast-paced change in a country that is beginning to unfurl its economic and political power in the global arena. While the Indian artists tend to accentuate the profound contradictions accompanying these transformations, the European artists more readily favor the side of Indian culture that revels in the senses.

Like a kaleidoscope, this highly original exhibition provides glimpses of the thousand and one facets of India…

India of the senses" from May 5 to August 25 at Espace Louis Vuitton
60, rue de Bassano /101 avenue des Champs-Elysées, 75008 Paris
Hours: 12 noon to 7pm, Monday through Saturday, 1pm to 7pm on Sunday
Curator: Hervé Mikaeloff
Artistic Advisor: Deepak Ananth
Scenographer: Alain Batifoulier

(Published on April 28th, 2006)

 
#60
^

They can make stories as much they want, true or not.. The point is that I*m buying a french design article and i want it to be made in france. It's not the same thing. IF they had an "Indian mystery"-collection, then sure.. Or made something from elepahnt hide. But not monogram. I'd even return it if it was made in the US.
 
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