Designer handbags and counterfeits

[disneysteve]

Ok, I'll start by saying I am a male so maybe I just don't get it but I'm sure someone will be happy to explain it to me.

A designer handbag can go for $1500. A counterfeit of the same bag will sell for about $60.

A recent TIME article talked all about the counterfeit trade. This week's issue has several reader letters suggesting that the crooks aren't the ones selling the counterfeits. The crooks are the ones charging $1500 for a handbag. I realize that the actual designer bag is of higher quality and better materials than the counterfeit but is it really worth 25 times the price? I can't imagine anyone but the super rich laying out that kind of money but people of more modest means do it quite a bit. Again, I just don't get it. Call me cheap (or perhaps call me sane). Any thoughts?

BTW, I'm not trying to justify counterfeiting. I realize and agree that it is illegal. I'm purely discussing the cost of the original product in the first place.

 

[monkeyboy]

Can't help you cause according to my ROMEX watch ($20 in NYC) it's time to go

 

[tonyswife]

I can't imagine why anyone would spend $1500 on a purse, real or counterfeit, no matter how cute it is. But, I'm pretty cheap too. I get my purses at Target for $20 or less.

 

[Maleficent13]

I think that if you create or design a luxury item (which to me is purses, jewelry, etc) and people are willing to pay $$$ for it, then good for you.

And if you have the $$$ to spend on a luxury item, then good for you.

Me, I wouldn't spend the $$$ on it. But that's just me.

 

[cynsaun]

Originally posted by monkeyboy
Can't help you cause according to my ROMEX watch ($20 in NYC) it's time to go

 

[nemo1987]

well i think that some of the designer purses are soo cute but there is no way i could afford to buy a real one so i have been looking all over the place for a fake louis vuitton bag that looks exactly like the real one. and the ones i am finding are still in the hundreds of dollars. i was thinking like 45-50! hello i am only 17 there is no way i could scrape up the money for a real one. and not only that i would be afraid something would happen to it like it would get stolen or fall apart or something.
**Sarah**

 

[pw2pp]

I love my FAKE Burberry & Louis Vuittons - I could never afford the real Louis Vuittons.

I started a thread about this a couple of days ago, but of course, it faded into oblivion and died an early death like most of my threads do.

 

[WendyWhiner]

I got a fake hangbag like the bags they sell at Target.

 

[sweet angel]

The difference may be that the counterfeiters don't TELL you they're fake. Since your from NJ, you may have heard about the recent bust in Ocean County.

I bought a bag from that particular place and I somewhat knew the person who sold it to me. She told me she would give me any of the bags for 1/2 off as a courtesy. Never said they were counterfeit. I, like a jerk, bought that hook, line and sinker.

Long story short, several months later I read in the paper about the bust. Boy did I feel stupid.

 

[totalia]

Designer anything isn't worth the money.

I agree that the real crooks are the ones charging $1500 for a handbag.

 

[stinkerbelle]

I have 3 Louis Vuittons, 3 Burberrys, 1 Prada, a Fendi, and a Gucci

total cost for all 9 purses? probably under $200. heheheh

I don't mind the knock offs - But I would NEVER pay that much money for a bag! The most I've spent on a purse was $55...and that was after a coupon and I believe I was paying with a gift card. I like to keep my purse prices around $40 tops because I like an 'assortment' to choose from. (DH gets rather steamed when he sees YET ANOTHER purse brought into our house. heheh)

If people want to point me out and say "look she's carrying a fake'...so freakin' what? I could care less...I dont' care if other people want to shell that kind of cash out - but I'd rather pay my mortgage.

 

[Strawberry Lemonade]

$1600 for a handbag? I'd never pay that much. But I do have a couple designer bags I paid no more than $200 for. I guess it depends on which designer you're looking at and the size of the bag.

Clearly, what you are paying for is the name. They also, as mentioned above, use higher quality materials. I suspect you are also paying for the designer's time - after all, someone had to sit down and plan these bags out. The knockoffs are copies - no creativity or imagination there.

I'm not trying to justify the high prices, but if people are willing to pay it, I don't see why the designers would start charging less.

 

[tonyswife]

Aren't the fake ones illegal? I don;t mean the ones that are made to look like the designer purses, but carry a diferent brand name. I mean the ones that try to pretend to be real. If they ARE illegal, how can anyone justify buying them, knowingly breaking the law? Iyt may be a stupid law, but it is a law none-the less.... I'm curious, is all.

 

[sweet angel]

That's why I felt so stupid. My Gucci bag and wallet both said "GUCCI". I probably never actually bothered to look at a REAL Gucci one, so I might have missed subtle details.

Yes, it is illegal...hence the bust that occurred here locally.

 

[minniepumpernickel]

My friend sent me a Dooney & Bourke bag from Japan. He said it was much cheaper than what you would pay for it here. You know how expensive that brand is.

Yikes, I hope that it's real.

 

[canwegosoon]

I can spot those bags a mile away...so I wouldn't even be tempted to buy them. As to the $$$ of a designer bag, I might. I have purchased some very high end bags, and found
1) they are usually classics, and do not go out of style
2) the quality is there
3) if its for you then do it ...don't opt out for the knock offs that every one (and I mean everyone!!!) has.

But if you have a different opinion that's good too!

I also like my Vera Bradley Bags...not expensive...and highly functional...love them.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by disneysteve
Ok, I'll start by saying I am a male so maybe I just don't get it but I'm sure someone will be happy to explain it to me.

A designer handbag can go for $1500. A counterfeit of the same bag will sell for about $60.

A recent TIME article talked all about the counterfeit trade. This week's issue has several reader letters suggesting that the crooks aren't the ones selling the counterfeits. The crooks are the ones charging $1500 for a handbag. I realize that the actual designer bag is of higher quality and better materials than the counterfeit but is it really worth 25 times the price? I can't imagine anyone but the super rich laying out that kind of money but people of more modest means do it quite a bit. Again, I just don't get it. Call me cheap (or perhaps call me sane). Any thoughts?

BTW, I'm not trying to justify counterfeiting. I realize and agree that it is illegal. I'm purely discussing the cost of the original product in the first place.

I think $60 is a ridiculous amount to pay for a handbag. I have a few bags that cost between $5 and $25 and not one of them has given out or broken and the oldest one I've had for 6 years.

 

[sweet angel]

I'm glad someone else keeps their bags until they literally fall apart. I thought it was just me.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by sweet angel
I'm glad someone else keeps their bags until they literally fall apart. I thought it was just me.

I do. And seriously, even if I hit the lottery, I don't think I could spend that much on a purse. I much prefer my cute $16 Tinkerbell bag from Fashion Bug.

 

[monkeyboy]

Originally posted by EsmeraldaX
. I much prefer my cute $16 Tinkerbell bag from Fashion Bug.

AHA!!!

The missing dog