Why Do People Buy Fake Designer Bags Or Fake Designer Anything?

[aga_famo]

ita.

I used to live in the ghetto when i was a child and a teenager. Some people would say that this was a bad experience for a child, but actually i learned a lot of things there.

One thing i remember very well is that many (not all) people in the ghetto are super-concerned to have prestigious goods, especially expensive clothes and cars. And yes, they are real a whole bunch of the time! You would see real, shiny cadillacs (this was the sixties) parked in front of the worst apartments a lot of the time. The jewelry people had was amazing. Yes, they wore too much of sometimes, and it would definitely spend time in the pawn shop occasionally (when they were absolutely forced to pay the rent) but it was amazing expensive jewelry. People there are very stylish and fashion forward. Styles actually come of the ghetto quite a bit. Well-known designers have been known to copy what they call 'street style.'

my father also used to tell us not to worry that we didn't have clothes and things (the latest electronics, the best brand of shoes) while all our friends and classmates did, because he was saving money to get out of the ghetto. Which he did. By the time i was in high school, we lived in a beautiful middle class house in a safe middle class neighborhood. And by the time i went to college, he could afford to send me where i wanted (ivy league, baby!)

i still had clothes in college that many who have posted here would look upon (cheap, baggy jeans--irregular shirts. I don't remember having a handbag, just a backpack).

I live well now and like nice things, that i can afford without skimping on the important things, like my children's education and my retirement savings and i am never impressed with what other people are wearing, real or fake, because for all i know, they are going home to an apartment which has no heat because they couldn't pay the bill because they had to have a real lv or bbag. Also, because that person in the unstylish clothes (mom jeans or whatever) may be a very interesting, intelligent and nice person, an immigrant on their way up like i was who can't afford the best right now and so wears what they can afford--or they may have other priorities, or they may be really rich and dressing down, you just can't tell.

this is the smartest and the most true post i have ever read on this forum. Thumbs up for u!

 

[purseladyabc]

I live in Denver and the fake cc cambon bags are all over the place here too. My hairdresser has several, that she swears are real, purchased from a 'friend' of hers who told her that they are directly from chanel and have minor imperfections (which is why they cant sell them retail). She pays $75 for them. I have no idea what her reasoning is on the fact that the leather is fake and looks cheap. People can be so naive.

I agree-I live in Vancouver and I would never buy an LV or Gucci bag because there's too many fakes-if I was to buy a real bag it would end up being one with no logo or a small one, like Balenciaga or Miu Miu, because most of those in Van are real. A lot of my friends used to carry fake bags, and I told them to go buy a nice purse at Aldo instead. Especially if you're young, people assume it's fake anyways. The worst are those tacky fake Chanel totes (with the double C's on the side) that EVERYONE has-I remember hearing someone on the bus saying she wanted to buy a fake one, but the girl "accidentally" brought real ones instead to show her, so she had to pay a bit more to get a real one (like, $50?). I can't believe people believe that.

 

[ckchou888]

I think what is worse are the sellers selling fakes and claiming they are real. That's a crime.

 

[educationiskey]

I think what is worse are the sellers selling fakes and claiming they are real. That's a crime.

It is is highly ironic for people to think that they are mortally or ethnically right for purchasing grossly overpriced designer handbag. When you think about the senseless killing of erotic animal and reptiles that are taken to produce these bags just like the skins that are ripped off of animal backs to create fur coats, how can you even think you are doing the right thing! Yet confused individuals say "it's a crime to purchase a fake".

Where is the crime in animals that are killed and the effects it has on our fragile and suffering eco-system. Hey, but thats okay because you are standup person for purchasing an original designer bag, right?

Jaded is a surely an understatement. If you are okay with having designers readjust your thinking that its perfectly okay to charge $5K and $10K for a handbag and the unnecessary killing of animals for the creation of designer excessive that no woman needs, wants perhaps, but does not need.

Women definitely need to revaluate just how adversely the fashion industry has changed your mindset. The designer handbag industry is not a win, in the bigger picture is a lose, lose situation for our environment. Education is definitely in order here!

 

[heather123]

It is is highly ironic for people to think that they are mortally or ethnically right for purchasing grossly overpriced designer handbag. When you think about the senseless killing of erotic animal and reptiles that are taken to produce these bags just like the skins that are ripped off of animal backs to create fur coats, how can you even think you are doing the right thing! Yet confused individuals say "it's a crime to purchase a fake".

Where is the crime in animals that are killed and the effects it has on our fragile and suffering eco-system. Hey, but thats okay because you are standup person for purchasing an original designer bag, right?

Jaded is a surely an understatement. If you are okay with having designers readjust your thinking that its perfectly okay to charge $5K and $10K for a handbag and the unnecessary killing of animals for the creation of designer excessive that no woman needs, wants perhaps, but does not need.

Women definitely need to revaluate just how adversely the fashion industry has changed your mindset. The designer handbag industry is not a win, in the bigger picture is a lose, lose situation for our environment. Education is definitely in order here!

Good post!

 

[Compass Rose]

Probably one of the only reasons why we even condone the discussion of fakes on this forum is that it is A FORUM. There is absolutely no reason why any sensible fashionable woman would want to cheapen her look by sporting any type of fakarooney bag. I just wish those that want to defend fakes for any reason whatsoever would just move over to any number of cheesy fake discussion sites clogging up the internet. But, after all, this is a forum, so the discussion will go on and on and on and on and.......

And don't forget, people, every dollar that you spend on a crappy fake is a dollar that is taken out of the American economy and instead is supporting some foreign country. This may be news to some of you out there, but we are in a recession in America. We don't need to support foreign countries who hate us anyway. Our country loses billions of dollars in tax revenue and sales just so some unintelligent woman wants to look like she's carrying around an expensive bag to most likely look like she's affluent. Don't ever talke to me about the virtues of carrying around a fake handbag on this forum. Everyone who knows me in person knows exactly how I stand on this issue because I call them out when I see any of my friends dragging around a fake piece of crap. I just don't get women who need to adorn themselves with counterfeit goods.

 

[sweetneet]

It is is highly ironic for people to think that they are mortally or ethnically right for purchasing grossly overpriced designer handbag. When you think about the senseless killing of erotic animal and reptiles that are taken to produce these bags just like the skins that are ripped off of animal backs to create fur coats, how can you even think you are doing the right thing! Yet confused individuals say "it's a crime to purchase a fake".

Where is the crime in animals that are killed and the effects it has on our fragile and suffering eco-system. Hey, but thats okay because you are standup person for purchasing an original designer bag, right?

Jaded is a surely an understatement. If you are okay with having designers readjust your thinking that its perfectly okay to charge $5K and $10K for a handbag and the unnecessary killing of animals for the creation of designer excessive that no woman needs, wants perhaps, but does not need.

Women definitely need to revaluate just how adversely the fashion industry has changed your mindset. The designer handbag industry is not a win, in the bigger picture is a lose, lose situation for our environment. Education is definitely in order here!

"mortally" and "ethnically" right?? and what is an "erotic animal" ?

no one here thinks they are morally "right" for purchasing an authentic handbag.. they're just saying that it is wrong to consciously support the sale of stolen and/or counterfeited material, so one should avoid doing so. Whether that is done by purchasing the real thing or purchasing a $20 no-name bag at Wal-mart, it does not matter. No one here is saying that people who can't afford a $$$ handbag need to scrape their money together to buy an authentic one. Like others have said, there are perfectly legit handbags out there selling for $10,$20 at Wal-mart and no one has anything against those. In my years as a starving graduate student I never felt any "pressure" to own a designer handbag; I got my bags from Ross or Target for $20 or less. I never felt "brainwashed" by the fashion industry to own a designer bag..those who do feel like they are have something else going on.

and most people here do not spend $5k or $10k on a bag, usually it's more hey like $600 to $1000. plus, why does it bother you if someone spends $10k on a bag, as long as they can afford it?? they are stimulating the economy, no? the money is goes directly into legit business and supporting american jobs, as opposed to untaxed money that is making some mob boss rich.

oh just now I was watching TV, there was a bit on fakes on Good Morning America...apparently counterfeit industry cost 750,000 American jobs. and yes, the money goes into organized crime..whether you believe it's terrorism or not, you can bet that all the money from the sale of fakes isn't going into something good, like helping the homeless or helping unemployed Americans get jobs!! lol. So seriously, I don't understand why people refuse to believe that the counterfeit industry is hurting the American economy.

edit: just read your post Compass Rose...great post!!

 

[pink.couture]

Either way you get introuble with buying a nice good quality bag or buying a fake. Most all good quality and hard craftmenship bags are leather. I choose to buy reals because its cruel to steal what our designers work hard on, everyday!!!

 

[Compass Rose]

Thanks, sweetneet....You just wrote everything that I wish I could have said, too. I just got all riled up this morning because the Today Show had a great segment on the evils of counterfeit bags and other goods and as I was sitting there watching it, I was amazed at just how it goes beyond supporting terrorism and child labor. It is DANGEROUS. Especially when someone purchases fake perfume that has urine in it, or pharmaceuticals that have bacteria and asbestos in them. Plus, I'm just riled up about our economy, so every dollar that every American can spend that supports our own economy, should really be spent here. There is nothing American about fake bags.....well, except for the uneducated American women who think they have to carry them. Okay. I'm done. I feel better now.....and very American.

 

[sweetneet]

Thanks, sweetneet....You just wrote everything that I wish I could have said, too. I just got all riled up this morning because the Today Show had a great segment on the evils of counterfeit bags and other goods and as I was sitting there watching it, I was amazed at just how it goes beyond supporting terrorism and child labor. It is DANGEROUS. Especially when someone purchases fake perfume that has urine in it, or pharmaceuticals that have bacteria and asbestos in them. Plus, I'm just riled up about our economy, so every dollar that every American can spend that supports our own economy, should really be spent here. There is nothing American about fake bags.....well, except for the uneducated American women who think they have to carry them. Okay. I'm done. I feel better now.....and very American.

ITA. I personally have been out of a job for 4 months now, so i totally am feeling the effects about the economic situation right now. I guess others don't take it as seriously because they either haven't experienced the effects of the recession or just don't care.

and yeah I watched the same thing on GMA..hopefully that will increase awareness of the situation, because most people (like the passersby interviewed) acted like buying a fake was no big deal...

 

[Swanky]

Last I checked designers bags weren't illegal. Girls, did something change overnight?
Counterfeits ARE illegal, that's our point.
Want to debate animal products, do a search and have at it, but this thread is about fakes.

Where is the crime in animals that are killed and the effects it has on our fragile and suffering eco-system. Hey, but thats okay because you are standup person for purchasing an original designer bag, right?

Also the argument about designer bags killing animals is moot IMO because a lot of counterfeits are also made from animal products. But again, that's NOT the topic at hand here.

I guess you don't wear leather shoes, eat Jello- or any other food w/ animal by-products, drive a car w/ leather seats, or use any other product tested on animals.

 

[heather123]

"mortally" and "ethnically" right?? and what is an "erotic animal" ?

no one here thinks they are morally "right" for purchasing an authentic handbag.. they're just saying that it is wrong to consciously support the sale of stolen and/or counterfeited material, so one should avoid doing so. Whether that is done by purchasing the real thing or purchasing a $20 no-name bag at Wal-mart, it does not matter. No one here is saying that people who can't afford a $$$ handbag need to scrape their money together to buy an authentic one. Like others have said, there are perfectly legit handbags out there selling for $10,$20 at Wal-mart and no one has anything against those. In my years as a starving graduate student I never felt any "pressure" to own a designer handbag; I got my bags from Ross or Target for $20 or less. I never felt "brainwashed" by the fashion industry to own a designer bag..those who do feel like they are have something else going on.

and most people here do not spend $5k or $10k on a bag, usually it's more hey like $600 to $1000. plus, why does it bother you if someone spends $10k on a bag, as long as they can afford it?? they are stimulating the economy, no? the money is goes directly into legit business and supporting american jobs, as opposed to untaxed money that is making some mob boss rich.

oh just now I was watching TV, there was a bit on fakes on Good Morning America...apparently counterfeit industry cost 750,000 American jobs. and yes, the money goes into organized crime..whether you believe it's terrorism or not, you can bet that all the money from the sale of fakes isn't going into something good, like helping the homeless or helping unemployed Americans get jobs!! lol. So seriously, I don't understand why people refuse to believe that the counterfeit industry is hurting the American economy.

edit: just read your post Compass Rose...great post!!

Despite the creative spelling/grammar I think there is some merit in the OP's post. I know this is a handbag forum, but for some of us other people's handbags are no big deal. If the US is anything like Ireland and Britain, hardly anyone gives a damn where their handbags and other goods come from. This can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on where you are coming from and how reliable your 'facts' are.

 

[KathyB]

Despite the creative spelling/grammar I think there is some merit in the OP's post. I know this is a handbag forum, but for some of us other people's handbags are no big deal. If the US is anything like Ireland and Britain, hardly anyone gives a damn where their handbags and other goods come from. This can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on where you are coming from and how reliable your 'facts' are.

:true:^^^ I notice other LV's and various designer bags that other ladies may carry, but I really don't care one way or the other if they are real or fake. If it's an obvious BAD fake, I may chuckle to myself, but still, it's not my business and that's it. I'm certainly not going to approach someone with exclamations of "you should be ashamed of yourself for carrying a fake bag!" Someone's reasons for purchasing a replica bag - regardless of designer, quality or cost - are their own. But, to be the Devil's Advocate for a second, I've wondered this: these women (and men, too, of course) who want to carry LV, Gucci, Prada, et al, not be allowed to purchase a good replica because they cannot afford the genuine item? LV, Gucci, Prada, Chanel -- they are not manufactured in America, nor are replicas. I know that I'll probably be blasted by a dozen long-range cannons for that comment, but the bottom line is, whether right or wrong, as long as there is a demand, there will be a supply.

 

[sweetneet]

i still don't understand the assertion that "it's not my business" whether or not someone chooses to carry a fake bag. i have a question for you then ..say at a library or office, you see someone clearly stealing a laptop from someone's else desk. are you saying that would not bother you at all? that you would just stand there and watch it happen, do nothing (don't report it, etc) thinking "well, it's none of my business, as i'm not the one getting ripped off."?? then if the thief sells it to someone, and that person turns out to be someone you know (say a coworker), who brags to you about getting a laptop for cheap...are you saying that wouldn't change your opinion of that person (someone who knowingly bought a stolen item, just so they could save a few bucks)??

seriously, i think the reason a lot of people think buying fakes are no big deal is because they're not the one dealing with the consequences, they think it's a victimless crime". so far i have heard no valid justification for purchasing a counterfeit or stolen item.

and even though Prada, Chanel, LV etc bags may not be manufactured in the US (some LV's are though), their sale DOES contribute to the US economy...think of the jobs of all the SAs, managers that work in US boutiques...not to mention all the other employees (in marketing, advertising, etc) that live/work in the US.

 

[sweetneet]

btw, for those who still believe there's "nothing wrong" with supporting counterfeit industry...here's a link to a thread someone started with a recent article on fake bags & products.

http://forum.purseblog.com/handbags-and-purses/today-show-segment-on-fake-bags-408122.html

the most sickening part that really saddened me was where they mention the young children working in the counterfeit bag sweatshop in Thailand...how their legs were intentionally broken by the owners so they couldn't go outside and play and were thus forced to stay in the factory and work OMG, how could anyone consciously support something that involves this???