I was running late this morning and the bus I was intending to catch was already gone. In a blind rush of frustrated desperation, I decided to board a similarly colored bus. When I got inside, I couldn’t believe my eyes! Everywhere I looked, there were passengers proudly displaying their exotic Coach handbags.
It felt surreal and surreal to me that I was surrounded by what appeared to be real Coach bags on a transit bus. I had to do a double take before I realized that these bags weren’t real. Fake Coach bags spread across the aisle like wild weeds. Several of the passengers were even struggling to stuff them into their already overflowing backpacks.
I just had to chuckle, as this was a first for me. I mean, I had seen counterfeit handbags being sold on street corners before, but I had never seen them out and about in public, let alone on a transit bus!
To me, it was a sign of the times, a reflection of how far we were willing to go and what lengths people were prepared to go to get what they wanted, even if it meant counterfeiting popular designer brands. It was wrong and yet fascinating at the same time, like a train wreck you can’t look away from.
The conversation inside the bus was amusing in itself, with the sellers peddling their knock-off Coach bags at bargain prices, and the customers bargain-hunting for the same over-hyped item. The majority of the customers seemed hedonistically unbothered by the fact that the product they were investing in was a fraud; it seemed that so long as they felt entitled to the item, and as long as it was relatively affordable, the validity of the product no longer mattered.
With every bargain, came a then-unrealizable risk of unconscionable manufacturing standards and a lack of quality control. It wasn’t until these customers got home that they realized their mistake of buying a fake Coach bag. By then, however, the injustice was irreversible and the seller was usually long gone.
I couldn’t help but find myself sympathizing with the innocent victims of this counterfeit agenda. It was so easy to be fooled by a replica, and buying it could often lead to unexpected and unpleasant surprises. On the other hand, counterfeiters were banking on the fact that most people simply wanted something stylish to look good with, without any regard to the fact that they were potentially supporting a shady multinational crime syndicate.
I usually support local business, but it made me wonder whether local merchants were missing a trick by not engaging with these mass-produced counterfeit designs. It seemed like a logical win-win, with masses stricter quality control and shorter supply chains driving down manufacturing costs and creating more sustainable products for consumers.
At the same time, I also had to consider the increasingly obvious issue of fraud by online retailers. This was becoming an ever more prevalent problem in the designer handbag industry, with scores of shells and websites masquerading as official suppliers of manufactured and branded products.
The fact that these websites were often copycat versions of authentic brands’ websites meant that customers would be duped into believing they’re buying real items when in fact they were receiving counterfeit products. This was deeply concerning and I couldn’t understand why those peddling fake products weren’t being brought to justice, despite extensive efforts by security and anti-fraud organizations.
Ultimately, I think it’s best to carefully consider all your options when looking for a designer handbag. Buying a knock-off product might be cheaper, but it’s rarely worth the risk and can very easily lead to disappointment. A reputable supplier, on the other hand, should deliver a product with that familiar designer appeal and peace of mind that you’re not participating in a crime.