When I visited Bangkok a few years ago, I was amazed at the variety of street street vendors selling fake bags in the notorious Silom Village. The hustle and bustle of people buying and selling bags was quite overwhelming and I wondered, what is the deal behind these cheap knock-offs of designer bags?
As I walked around the area, I noticed the vendors were mostly men and women from rural areas, probably from the provinces. Many of them had bags open on the ground, and all of them had a chirpy sales pitch, trying to distract tourists from the great fake bags they were selling. What struck me was the wide variety of designs and colours. Everything from Gucci, Prada to Louis Vuitton and Balenciaga.
Although fake bags may seem an attractive proposition, they literally come at a price. Generally, these bags are made of low-quality materials and often flake off after a few uses. Although they may look good in the beginning, they can fall apart too easily when used for even a few months.
But that doesn’t stop the locals from indulging in these counterfeits of designer bags. People from everywhere flock to the area to get their hands on these discounted knockoffs. I observed happy shoppers, gleaming with delight, holding up their bags, like they have just won the lottery.
The fact that some of these bags are manufactured in other parts of the country, also contributes to the demand. With the low cost of labor and materials, the bag makers can produce the bags quickly and efficiently. And as long as there are plenty of tourists wanting to buy these bags at what feels like a bargain, Silom Village will continue to be a hub for these fake bags.
In my opinion, I feel the fake bags sold at Silom Village are more harmful than beneficial. Sure, some of these bags are certainly better quality than others but as they are counterfeits, people are actually investing in something that has no real value. Additionally, with the rise in demand, more and more people are compromising on quality and paying extra for something that isn’t original.
But visitors obviously have different beliefs. Even after careful selection, most of them don’t stop after buying one bag. They come back and buy more. This indicates that people continue to find the experience enjoyable, despite the risks associated with buying these fake bags.
Although these bags appear to be a much cheaper alternative to designer bags, customers must think twice before purchasing. Firstly, not all of them are from the same manufacturer, so they may be of different sizes, shapes and designs. There is also a possibility of being scammed with a fake, so customers should take extra precautions and check the material and design of the bag thoroughly before buying.
Apart from that, the marketplace is also open to counterfeiters who pass off fake bags as genuine designer bags. Therefore, customers should do their research beforehand and be wary of any flashy or overly cheap knockoffs.
It is also worth noting that even though the bags might seem cheap, the cost of shipping them overseas can be quite expensive. So unless you are willing to pay extra to have them shipped, or are going to be using it during your stay, it may not be a worthwhile investment to buy fake bags from Silom Village.