My friends started laughing at my reaction, but I wouldn’t let it go; I felt like something precious had been taken away and I just couldn’t wrap my head around why they’d choose to wear knock offs. “These fake name brand purses cheapen the value of the real ones! Plus, by going this route they’re probably supporting a shady, low-quality product,” I said.
The girls didn’t seem to understand my passionate plea, but I kept going. “Do you realize how many people work hard designing and creating those name brand bags? They put in years of research and development just to bring you the real thing. Fake name brand purses take away from that work,” I said with a heavy sigh.
Finally, I got them to understand what I was trying to say. They agreed to put the knock offs away, but they wanted to know why this kind of thing meant so much to me. So I told them about the first name brand purse I ever bought.
It was a little black cross body bag and it had a little chain embellishment right in the middle of the front flap. I felt like I’d accomplished something important when I saw that purse in the mall window. I saved my allowance for weeks to buy it, and putting it on that first day felt like a rite of passage. Seeing those girls with fake name brand purses made me think about how much of the meaning of such a purchase is lost when it’s a knockoff – and that’s why I got so passionate about it.
The girls nodded and agreed to get rid of their fake name brand purses – apparently a few of them had only bought them because their friends suggested it – and we went our separate ways. But I left with a happy feeling in my heart, knowing I’d made a difference.
Not everyone will understand why name brands carry such significance. But those of us who do know there’s something special about them – and those of us who appreciate the work that goes into such fine design – feel it even more strongly. That’s why, even after all these years, I’m still willing to face down a trio of teenage girls in defense of a name brand purse!
Fake name brand purses are a menace to the industry, and doing something about it is more important than ever. Every time we buy knockoffs, not only do we support cheap, low-quality production but we’re also encouraging a scam aginst real brands. Plus, it such a shame to think of all the hard work that millions of people put into making name brand purses, only for their efforts to be undermined by something as dishonourable as knockoffs!
But fake name brand purses exist, and there’s big money to be made for those perpetuating them. Buyers often don’t even realize they’re being duped; these days the replicas are getting better and better, and it’s becoming harder and harder to tell the difference. Plus, even if you did spot a fake name brand purse, there’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to tell others; unless you’re a professional, it’s almost impossible to spot the difference between a luxurious designer bag and a cheap copy.
And, of course, price can be used to deceive. We’ve all seen those “I can’t believe it’s not designer!” sales, where you can buy something that looks a lot like a name brand purse for only a fraction of the cost. The temptation to snap them up is hard to resist, and there’s no doubt that these types of scams are what’s driving the demand for fake name brand purses.
It’s easy to be taken in when you see such amazing offers on “designer” bags; after all, who wouldn’t want to get a bargain? But if people looked a little closer, they’d invariably find that they weren’t getting the real deal – and if more people took that perspective, the fake name brand purse market could be severely reduced.
So how can we reduce the scourge of the fake name brand purses that take away from the hardworking designers who bring us the real deal? Well, for a start, it’s important to educate people about what they’re buying. If someone knows that the purse in their hand is cheap and deceitful, then they’re much less likely to buy it – and that can only be a good thing for the industry as a whole.
Education isn’t always enough, however, and it can be very hard to stop the merchants who make a living on selling phoney goods. In such cases, stricter laws should be put in place to allow authorities to better combat these scams. For example, there could be harsher penalties for those caught selling fake name brand purses – this would no doubt act as a deterrent to those merchants who would willingly sell such items.
Better enforcement is also essential. Authorities need to be aware of the latest scams and replicas, and they need to be able to distinguish between the real and the fake. Relying on the brand owners’ complaints alone won’t be enough; law enforcement needs to be actively hunting down fake name brand purses and shutting down the locations where they’re sold.
The challenge is global – the sale of knock off purses is devastating the fashion trades of many countries. In the long run, the only way to fight it is for a concerted effort between authorities and manufacturers to create a global crackdown on the sale of fake name brand purses. Until then, it will be up to us to stay educated, vigilant, and to call out these scams when we spot them.