I was recently on the lookout for a Gucci Blondie bag that had been released in limited edition a few weeks back. I was exceedingly excited to get my hands on it, and expected to find it more easily than I actually did. To my shock, it was sold out in every store. I had resigned to the fact that I would never own the bag until a friend of mine called me and suggested that I try this one place he had heard about. He wasn’t sure if it was a legitimate outlet or not, but he promised to keep an eye out for me.
I did a bit of research and as much as I wanted to believe, it turned out that it was, in fact, a fraud. A fake Gucci Blondie bag had been created somehow, limited numbers of it were going around and people were duped out of a huge amount of money. As if this wasn’t bad enough, some companies have been creating counterfeit versions in an attempt to cash in on the hysteria.
I was cold-heartedly angry that someone had gone to such lengths and taken advantage of people’s naivete. I contemplated whether or not it was legal or could it be considered some form of art or mere product of someone’s creativity? Its certainly a sick thought, but some people have made an attempt to manufacture a fake Gucci Blondie bag to make a quick buck.
I was left angry, humorless and feeling very suspicious. I pondered how people would be able to identify a real from a fake. Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to do this without having some form of expertise. To make matters worse, the companies that produce these counterfeits have gone to extremes to make them look extremely real. From the price tags, logos, and even to the font, if they were able to replicate this exactingly, anyone can be deceived by this bag.
Feeling taking, I decided to discuss the situation with another friend. After a thorough discussion, I realised there was not much one could do in such a situation. Trying desperately to find some solace, I decided to find out why someone would be desperate or motivated enough to go through such lengths. It’s not only money that people could be hoping to gain from this- it could be happiness, control, or even a feeling of accomplishment.
My friend then went on to tell me about a story he had heard from another friend of his. Apparently, someone living in a small city had a dream to own a Gucci Blondie bag and didn’t have the resources to buy it. He found out about it, did some research and realised that he could buy the leather to make a Gucci Blondie bag, he then managed to get hold of some hardware from a Gucci store nearby. His friends thought what he did was pure madness and said it was a recipe for disaster.
On the contrary, this man was able to successfully make the bag and sell it to a close circle of friends. To him, this was a tremendous accomplishment and a dream come true. He was now resting on the fact that he had successfully created a work of art that gave him the satisfaction of creating something with his own two hands.
The more I thought about it, the more I realised he had done what he had done not just for money, but it was solely meant to give him something money couldn’t, which was satisfaction. But this wasn’t exactly legal, was it? This kind of stuff cannot be tolerated, as it doesn’t create any value, it only createsftrouble for every customer who ends up buying something fake.
I became aware that if a fake Gucci Blondie bag has been made, or other fakes for that matter, people need to look out for them to avoid getting duped out of unsuspecting money. I now know that like with any other product, people have to lay special attention to things like the stitching, the branding and signature marks, and the quality of the material before purchasing any product. Additionally, I learned to never purchase any product from an unknown source no matter how excited you feel about it.