Counterfeit designer bags at my mall!!!

[luvsJack]

Wow, I knew when I left last night that this was going to get silly!! *I* was the one who originally said that I play the "Real or Fake" game with my daughter. Big deal! It is people watching. It is a discreet conversation between two people.

Ok, grab your panties and bunch em up real tight........we also discuss what people wear!!!

My daughter is studying French, marketing, and fashion so this makes sense to us. Example: "What do you think of the outfit......guy at your two o'clock...good mix or mess?"

In MY mind, discussing or owning handbags, whether designer or non-designer, should not warrant the "attacks" and "judgementmal" comments that are here. Do you people go into each thread and "attack" the folks who stay at deluxe resorts instead of values, simply because YOU don't see the need for them to spend THEIR money how they choose?

Do you walk up to the person getting into her Lexus and verbally bash her because YOU don't think she should spend that much money when a Chevy will do?

There are a few people who, it seems, joined this thread simply to bash, not contribute an opposing point of view.....just to bash and ridicule.

I don't see where anyone is any "better" than anyone else.

Wow. Ya'll spend a lot of time sitting around looking at other people. I just don't have time for that.

I can't speak for everyone, but IMHO, its not about what you purchase or how much you spend on it. Its your attitude about it.

The lady with the Lexus? I don't give a rat's behind what she spent on it as long as she doesn't start playing "a lot or a little" with my VW.
Deluxe vs Value? As long as those in the Poly don't come down to POP and start making rude comments, we're good.

Its all about the attitude.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Oh for goodness sake, it doesn't have anything to do with bags or cars or deluxe hotels. You openly stated that you look down your noses at people who don't dress or accessorize the way you think they should and then you get bent out of shape because people call it shallow and snotty? It is what it is. And don't assume those "discreet" conversations aren't overheard. Often, those conversations are meant to be overheard. It is a juvenile activity that most of us give up once we realize what is really important.

Spotting a fake isn't looking your nose down on someone though.

You must get crazy over the show "What not to Wear".

Looking at an inanimate object with a critical eye is not tantamount to looking down on someone.

 

[LindaR]

I never stated that I look down my nose.......I SAID that we play a GAME to determine if a handbag (not a person....a piece of leather, zipper, snaps, etc) is real or fake. I never said that we ridicule.....you are saying that.

This is done between two people.....not a group....there is no pointing...but you think whatever you want....YOU are judging just as much as you say I am!

 

[islandmum]

quite ironic now that certain premium brands - Burberry, LV (in particular) and many more are now seen as "cheap" in the UK and Europe.

Not cheap in money value but used by a lower class person : the nouveau riche, those with cash but no style etc etc.

Tommy Hilfiger and Yves Saint-Laurent had the same problem some years ago with "chavs" as they have in the UK wearing these labels and devaluing the brand purely by the image of these types of people wearing the brand, rather than the preppies that the company were originally targetting. Both companies have fought hard to re-establish a better place in the market and lose the "chav" tag.

If you have any taste and style in Europe you will not be decked out in Burberry or LV bags shouting their names out, you'll be walking with a premium brand that is discreet and expensive without labels and motifs all over it.

 

[luvsJack]

I never stated that I look down my nose.......I SAID that we play a GAME to determine if a handbag (not a person....a piece of leather, zipper, snaps, etc) is real or fake. I never said that we ridicule.....you are saying that.

This is done between two people.....not a group....there is no pointing...but you think whatever you want....YOU are judging just as much as you say I am!

If it is just a piece of leather, zipper, snaps and etc.; why does it matter?

WHY, do you sit and play this game? Why do you care what another person is carrying? If real or fake matters so much to you, the reason you gave before doesn't make any sense. There are much better ways of ensuring that you purchase a real bag.

 

[SundaeAfternoon]

The funny thing is, the people who carry real designers bags are being called snobs here, but the fact is, its the ones who carry the fakes that are the snobs (as in wanting the labels so that everyone thinks they have the label). My friend buys counterfeit stuff all the time, she has a bunch of fake bags, and buys her dd fake bags and just got her a pair of fake UGGs. I keep telling her that they are fake, and illegal etc, but she says she doesn't care. She isn't willing to spend the money for real and she wants the label because she wants people to think she has the real thing, to me thats a snob.

And do you think that might be because so many people who can afford the real stuff are judging them on what they do or do not have? It's kind of like peer pressure.

I have found in life that it doesn't matter what you have - people are not impressed by it, and those who are, aren't worth your time of day.

 

[SundaeAfternoon]

Oh for goodness sake, it doesn't have anything to do with bags or cars or deluxe hotels. You openly stated that you look down your noses at people who don't dress or accessorize the way you think they should and then you get bent out of shape because people call it shallow and snotty? It is what it is. And don't assume those "discreet" conversations aren't overheard. Often, those conversations are meant to be overheard. It is a juvenile activity that most of us give up once we realize what is really important.

 

[DeluxePrincess]

Tommy Hilfiger and Yves Saint-Laurent had the same problem some years ago with "chavs" as they have in the UK wearing these labels and devaluing the brand purely by the image of these types of people wearing the brand, rather than the preppies that the company were originally targetting. Both companies have fought hard to re-establish a better place in the market and lose the "chav" tag.

Never heard the expression "chavs" before so I looked it up. This picture was on Wiki:

LOL I think we have a name for this look in the US too.

 

[luvmy3]

Maybe so, I just would have never though a mall would allow someone to sell counterfeit bags. Knock-offs, yes; counterfeits no.

Maybe just putting the logo in a different place or slightly off center makes it a legal knock-off as opposed to getting it exactly the same making it an illegal counterfeit? Like I said, I don't know a lot about such things; wouldn't be able to tell the difference (except of course that real ones are bought in high end stores and fakes are bought in kiosks or from trunks of cars or from guys at truck stops--which seems to be a much easier way to tell than to play very snobbish games at the airport)

I can't imagine that so many people are actually buying true "counterfeit" bags as opposed to knock off bags.

Having an issue with counterfeit bags does not make you a snob; worrying about what other people carry and knowingly sit there and make judgment on someone's purse, does.

Also, someone can sit and argue about counterfeits being made in sweat shops all day long, but it has been pointed out many times that many of the originals are made in the same places. I would not buy anything that I KNEW was created, even partly in a sweat shop (I probably do buy things that I don't KNOW are, but once informed would stop). Its being real or counterfeit has nothing to do with that. I would care much more about where something is made than whether or not LV or D&B or Coach or whoever is losing money over the sale.

When talking about counterfeits, the logo can be anywhere on the bag. Its not about the style of the bag, its about illegally using the real designers trademarked logo. If you buy a bag with LV on it and its not made by Louis Vutton, its an illegal copy. If the bag had LU on it, it would be a designer inspired, which is not illegal or considered counterfeit.
Yes, people do buy true counterfeits to "fool" people into thinking they have the real thing. I know not everyone does it, some just like the look of a certain bag, but the reason counterfeiting is such a problem is because people want the designer label without having to pay for it.
Unless the OP was directly judging or making fun of the person who was carrying the bag, I don't see pointing out a fake bag as snobbish behavior. If you are carrying a designer bag, (some) people will notice it and have an opinion. Whats the difference if the OP and her dd were just commenting on the style of bags instead of their authenticity? Nothing.

And do you think that might be because so many people who can afford the real stuff are judging them on what they do or do not have? It's kind of like peer pressure.

I have found in life that it doesn't matter what you have - people are not impressed by it, and those who are, aren't worth your time of day.

It doesn't matter to me why, the act of trying to appear that you have designer duds is in itself snobbish just as looking down at someone who doesn't own the real thing. Neither is right and there is no excuse that makes it so.

 

[NikitaZee]

Wow, I knew when I left last night that this was going to get silly!! *I* was the one who originally said that I play the "Real or Fake" game with my daughter. Big deal! It is people watching. It is a discreet conversation between two people.

Ok, grab your panties and bunch em up real tight........we also discuss what people wear!!!

Agreed on all counts

I talk about what people wear and their hairstyle and since I'm a shoe girl I always notice the shoes. In fact I was just at the mall the other day and a girl was there in a very short miniskirt, fishnet stockings and these boots that looked like amputated wooly mammouth legs. She looked like a prostitute that worked the carnival
Anyway, we as a society dress and accessorize so that people will notice us, and we are all guilty of noticing, thinking and even commenting once in awhile.

Yep. I don't understand why anyone on this thread has taken such exception to it. We all do it, every one of us. We don't have to *teach* our kids to do it or not - its human nature.

 

[Aisling]

Then color me poor and happy about it!

Me, too!

 

[Ember]

I'm hesitant to get back into this conversation... But I know I feel disapproval at the obvious flaunting of stolen goods. Around here it's a trend for teenage boys to wear ball caps with the tags still on to show that they were stolen. I'm not an expert on most designers but I can, sometimes, spot a fake Chanel (that was the designer I focused on in my paper). I have never laughed at someone, but in the privacy of my own head I do disapprove. I see carrying a counterfeit bag as no different than parading stolen merchandise.

I also disapprove when I hear of people re-using their refillable mugs, pool hopping, or having illegal weddings on Disney property. To me it's all the same thing and it's wrong.

 

[klj27]

I have heard of all the disney faux pas, except the illegal weddings on property. I can not even imagine that!

 

[Ember]

I have heard of all the disney faux pas, except the illegal weddings on property. I can not even imagine that!

Yeah, the question will pop up every now and then on the wedding boards. I'm even pretty sure I saw one once. If you're caught you will be escorted off property, which is not a wedding memory I'd want. Disney is very propitiatory about their weddings on property. People want the experience of a Disney wedding but the don't want to pay to go through Disney. Interestingly, all the same arguments could apply. The couple wouldn't have given Disney the money anyway, who does it hurt, it's their business, why do people care what others do... And even if all those things are true, it's still wrong.

 

[connorlevismom]

I have heard of all the disney faux pas, except the illegal weddings on property. I can not even imagine that!

People have illegal weddings? I cannot even imagine that. What if someone from property starts walking towards them in the middle of the ceremony to confront them? Does everyone start running while the minister keeps doing the ceremony? Wedding on the run!

Kristine

 

[tomthebarncat]

Must have been the guys first day.

I am not referring to tax free sales for foreigners, that get their tax back at the airport, the military has it's own form and many shops will not take it. Chanel and Prada will not take the form! As for LV in Frankfurt their customer base is Germans and Japanese. The day I was there all the other customers were Japanese and they were buying like they were never going to see this stuff again. FYI: I did not buy a logo bag but a leather one!! and I do like it but the bag I am currently carrying is a Giorgio Armani bag and yes I did take the tax off of it and it has a hologram inside of it with a control number.

 

[clutter]

But our whole society is based on status items. Does that make each and every company "guilty?" I mean, no one needs a tv, no one needs a new car, or closets full of clothes, or big homes, or vacations...

If we were all trying to be both globally responsible and acting the best interest of humanity we would live on as little as possible, consume as few resources as possible, and give everything we didn't need to help those who needed it. But we aren't all Mother Theresa... I don't see how a new car is any less of a status item than a handbag, or a large screen tv, or a vacation, or new clothes.

It was mentioned that there is nothing inherently superior in a designer bag, and that is absolutely true. But there's also nothing inherently bad in it either, it's just a bag. The fact that someone values it enough to pay a lot of money for it, means just that. Same as any consumer good. The fact that someone envies, or wants something and feels entitled to have it without paying for it is not a justification for supporting crime.

While I agree with you, I personally don't know anyone that sits at an airport and passes time by playing 'real or fake' about tvs, cars, vacations, cell phones or even clothes.

It's one thing to abhor counterfeiting. I do so, too. It's a different thing to only buy top-of-the-line BMWs, the latest cell phone or a larger screen tv. But to sit around and laugh at people that want, but cannot afford, the designer goods that you have is no less tacky than those that purchase them.

According to speculation around my neighborhood, the woman that stole close to $100,000 from our PTA over the years she was involved with it used the funds to buy, among other things, designer purses. No fakes for her!!!!

 

[Robinrs]

Wow, I knew when I left last night that this was going to get silly!! *I* was the one who originally said that I play the "Real or Fake" game with my daughter. Big deal! It is people watching. It is a discreet conversation between two people.

Ok, grab your panties and bunch em up real tight........we also discuss what people wear!!!

My daughter is studying French, marketing, and fashion so this makes sense to us. Example: "What do you think of the outfit......guy at your two o'clock...good mix or mess?"

In MY mind, discussing or owning handbags, whether designer or non-designer, should not warrant the "attacks" and "judgementmal" comments that are here. Do you people go into each thread and "attack" the folks who stay at deluxe resorts instead of values, simply because YOU don't see the need for them to spend THEIR money how they choose?

Do you walk up to the person getting into her Lexus and verbally bash her because YOU don't think she should spend that much money when a Chevy will do?

There are a few people who, it seems, joined this thread simply to bash, not contribute an opposing point of view.....just to bash and ridicule.

I don't see where anyone is any "better" than anyone else.

Real or Fake is not Bash and ridicule?? Making comments about people's clothing is not Bash and ridicule??

This is a discussion board with anonymous people. That is a reflection of your values with your offspring. You have that right but it's not the same between strangers?

I prefer to teach my child about the INSIDES of people and how to enjoy them for their character, not what they own. But that's just me.

 

[DeluxePrincess]

People have illegal weddings? I cannot even imagine that. What if someone from property starts walking towards them in the middle of the ceremony to confront them? Does everyone start running while the minister keeps doing the ceremony? Wedding on the run!

Kristine

Can I just say that I LOVE these Disboards? I hope one day I get invited to one of these illegal Disney weddings. Sounds like good times for sure!

 

[connorlevismom]

Can I just say that I LOVE these Disboards? I hope one day I get invited to one of these illegal Disney weddings. Sounds like good times for sure!

Poor guests probably don't even know. They see people take off running and think "what the hell?"

Kristine