Knock off purses. Why?

[RangerPooh]

I think that it has to do with keeping up with the Joneses. I was never a purse fan and enjoyed my basic bags that cosat less than $40 and with care would last me a few years ...if I was lucky. Then DH took me shopping and bought me a Coach purse. My god that bag is nice!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have received oddles of compliemnts over the years and I have only seen 1 or 2 people with the "same" bag. I actualy feel quite special that my bag isn't as common and that my husband wanted to splurg on me, for somehting that I would never splurge on myself.

This said I have spent a number of years living in a university town where it seems like every 18-22 yo has a "designer" purse. How many are fakes I don't know, but in that town it's all about apearances. So while it might sound shallow, I felt special to be seen wearing my Tiffany necklace and Coach bag. Not becuase I spent outside my means or mommy and daddy's money bought it for me, but becuase my husband who has good taste (me, I'm clueless. lol) bought them for me.

 

[Callie]

I've bought 3 real coach bags for total of just around 300. I'm a college student, but I saved up money, and I rarely buy nice things. I wouldn't ever carry a fake, but it's not something to laugh at. Sure I'll make a comment to my mom about if someones is (just because she's curious) but we don't laugh at them.

 

[KellyNY]

And do we know for sure that those who purchase "real" designer bags aren't supporting slave labor and child labor in other countries? I'm curious as to what it actually costs to make a designer bag, and what they actually charge for it.

Definitely not what they charge but you will be surprised to know it actually a lot. I was watching some home shopping, those that pop after midnight and have limited items, they had croco bags, or aligator, actually one is common another is extremely rare, do not remember witch is witch. They had those very simple bags with no designer names at all for $3,000 - $5,000 just because of material. I was shocked, really. I googled those kind of bags and yes, they had a real deal, those kinds(the rare once) cost even more. So I guess designer bags come from expensive materials as well. Maybe it is just a cow but this cow was massaged they and night and had caviar for breakfast.

 

[crisi]

Then you cannot afford it. You trully can afford it when you do not think about better places to invest your money, when other things are covered. When you can esily spend $1200 like $20, you do not know words like Kohls, JCPennie and so on. I am talking about really rich people, not middle or even upper middle class. And those peole support society as well, do not think all they do is spend money. I am not one of them unfortunately but I know some very rich ones.

No, I can afford it. I am one of them - those rich people - though not uber rich - but I know some of those too. But I'm the millionaire next door type - driving around in a low end car, couponing my groceries, sticking money aside to pay for my grandchildren's education. A lot of us do know words like Kohls and Penny's and rubber chicken. Having money doesn't mean one needs to spend it - particularly on stuff like designer purses - unless you want to spend it.

The uber rich people I know - most of them don't spend it either. But then, I'm in Minnesota, home of non flashy wealth.

 

[smkiya]

Well, living better, means spending more. Lets not go to extremes like flying private jet to MCO but better house, better clothes, better education and so on is defenition of living better. And yes, helping society is one of it as well. As for your friend, he inherited money, right? Just waiter and multimillionaire does not come together, unless there some really good tips(just having fun).

Actually, he made his millions working as a waiter. You'd be surprised, but waiting tables proves to be very lucrative for many people. In fact, it is a career that people retire from. Some waiters (many more than you think) pull in over 6 figures a year, as this person does. He does not however believe that living better means buying a bigger house. His home is modest yes, but he has everything he and his family needs and they are happy. He invests very wisely, and has since he started working at 17 or 18.

 

[MrsPooh]

I currently have an authentic D&B (hand me down from co-worker) but I am guilty of using a knock-off Coach. I truly am not interested in designer bags. I purchased the fake Coach after shopping for a long time trying to find a purchase that had pockets where I wanted in a size, strap and color combo I liked - at a price I could afford. I had no luck finding anything until I came across the imitation Coach. It had everything exactly as I had wanted at a price I could afford. Truthfully I would have preferred if it wasn't a fake so that people didn't think I was trying to be a "poser" but I liked it so I purchased it.

Sorry to all of you who are appalled that I am a "poser", use a fake and promoted an illegal activity - if I could have found another purse to meet my wants I wouldn't have purchased it.

 

[rockundergirl]

I have statements, and math

- its silly to pretend one thing is another thing

- I'm not sure which is worse, spending a grand or more on a bag, or wanting people to think you did.

- my most expensive purse was 80 dollars on sale, and i feel weird about it cuz i often have less then 80 dollars cash to put in it.

- I make about 60 a year, that's about 28 dollars an hour, so i worked for about 2.8 hours to get the 80 dollar purse I have. If i wanted to buy a 1500 dollar purse, I would have to work over 53 hours to earn the money for it. ( in case anyone is wondering how i talk myself out of having the purses my friends do )

k I"m done lol

 

[DisneyKT]

I don't know why anyone would own the real thing, much less a fake. I suppose some people can tell the difference between a fake and a real LV purse, I don't need to because I can laugh equally at both of them.

I hear you. And I agree. What a complete waste of money. Real or Fake.

 

[KellyNY]

No, I can afford it. I am one of them - those rich people - though not uber rich - but I know some of those too. But I'm the millionaire next door type - driving around in a low end car, couponing my groceries, sticking money aside to pay for my grandchildren's education. A lot of us do know words like Kohls and Penny's and rubber chicken. Having money doesn't mean one needs to spend it - particularly on stuff like designer purses - unless you want to spend it.

The uber rich people I know - most of them don't spend it either. But then, I'm in Minnesota, home of non flashy wealth.

I respect your way of thinking and providing for your future grandkids. However I wonder what is the point of having money and not enjoying them. OK, education for future generations is a good investment, agreed, but if your kids will also save every penny for future generations and so on, who will actually enjoy money, I mean outside of education. If you happy with your car, it is ok, you do not have to show off with Ferrari(sp), if your house is nice and enough for you, ok do not invest in a castle, but what you do not buy anything you just like and do not really need? Money represent what you can buy, otherwise they just paper. JMHO.

 

[luvmy3]

That's a valid point. Part of me just doesn't get the purse thing.

Although, I'd argue that a 50 inch flat screen TV for $800 would provide a family with at least five years or so of use. Likely more, but technology moves quickly.....still, it would provide sound and picture for at least five years.

If you have an $800 bag....how many years will you carry it? If you care enough about fashion to spend that kind of money on a bag, clearly you wouldn't be caught dead carrying a bag that is no longer stylish. I'm just sayin.....

If I spent $800 on a purse I would make sure that it was not trendy, but something timeless. I would also use it just about everyday.
I wouldn't spend that much on one, mainly because dh would kill me I'm perfectly happy with my Coach bags and my D&B bags from the outlet stores.

And do we know for sure that those who purchase "real" designer bags aren't supporting slave labor and child labor in other countries? I'm curious as to what it actually costs to make a designer bag, and what they actually charge for it.

I guess we don't know for sure but I have faith that if they were they would be exposed. However I do know that making and selling counterfeits is in fact illegal and therefore would never support that by purchasing one.

 

[mollay]

I've always thought buying knockoffs was pretty tacky to begin with (not to mention it's usually so very easy to spot fakes) but what really irritates me is that the people producing these counterfeit handbags typically utilize sweat shops and child/slave labour.

I buy the real deal for the sake of quality.

 

[IDoDis]

Well, be them real or fake, I get plenty of comments on my knock-offs. People see it and say, "Oh, I love your purse." Cashiers in stores, waitresses, etc... Sometimes I tell them it's fake and they look surprised. My DD said to stop telling people it was fake, so I don't say it anymore. I'm not going to blow $1500 on a Dulce & Gabbana purse, but am happy with my knock-off. I don't care if it can be spotted as a fake. Maybe those who pay top dollar for purses might just have some sour grapes. So to make themselves feel better for spending so much money on a purse, they feel like they must put others down for having a knock-off.

Honestly who cares.

 

[KellyNY]

Actually, he made his millions working as a waiter. You'd be surprised, but waiting tables proves to be very lucrative for many people. In fact, it is a career that people retire from. Some waiters (many more than you think) pull in over 6 figures a year, as this person does. He does not however believe that living better means buying a bigger house. His home is modest yes, but he has everything he and his family needs and they are happy. He invests very wisely, and has since he started working at 17 or 18.

I am surprised, more shocked, really, not kidding now. Esp. when we all talk here how much to tip Disney waiters and how many times people say how litle they make. But if he did it, good for him, what kind of place he works at, I see you from Jersey, are we talking NY?

 

[Ember]

What a load of rubbish I agree that buying fakes is bad, mostly on quality terms, but those stats take a tremendous leap of faith by assuming that A) the person who bought the $100 fake would go out and buy the $1000 real item and B)those "lost" jobs weren't going overseas anyway.

Take a look inside of your Walmart purse and see if it has a Made In America tag on it. That's where your jobs are being lost. More jobs are being created overseas because a market exists for $100 knockoffs. Perhaps if companies started making nice, inexpensive handbags in America then you would see some of those losses come back.

Perhaps next you can tell us how Al Quaeda wouldn't exist without the illegal handbag trade, I've heard that one also

Just because you don't like the statistics doesn't make them false. Do some research, none of this information is hard to find or verify. The counterfeit industry is huge and it's very harmful. Just because someone wouldn't spend the money on a real designer bag, doesn't justify supporting criminal activity. Had they spent the $25 on a legitimate brand from Wal-Mart, rather than a cheap Chanel knock off, the money stays legal. It's arguments like yours that lead people to underestimate the impact of their actions. It may only be one purse, but it's part of a much larger problem.

Yes, many other brands have problems. And many legitimate brands are made overseas or even with labor standards many of us would find shocking. Trying to source where your products is coming from is part of being a socially conscious shopper. Again, I'm sorry you don't like the facts, but they are true.

On a different note, I'm still shocked at how judgmental this thread is. It's somehow okay to "brag" about a cheap purse and how much of a superior person you are because you would never "waste" your money on such nonsense, but yet in the same breath you bemoan someone looking down on someone else because they don't carry a designer bag. Judgment is judgment. I'm sorry, but not one of the people posting is either morally superior or smarter because of the bag they choose to carry - be it a $5 thrift store find or a $4000 Chanel bag. Judging someone on something so superficial is wrong, regardless of the direction of the judgment.

 

[finz2left]

I am surprised, more shocked, really, not kidding now. Esp. when we all talk here how much to tip Disney waiters and how many times people say how litle they make. But if he did it, good for him, what kind of place he works at, I see you from Jersey, are we talking NY?

I worked at TGIFridays in Center City Philadelphia-- so NOT a high end restaurant, LOL, from 1992-1994. I made $200.00 a night on Th, Fr, S nights, and $100.00 a night during the week. I was great at upselling liquor, and was good at getting appetizers or desserts on the checks. I put myself through graduate school, and made more then than I did my first year in my "real" job. Though, many of my friends left for more upscale restaurants and talked about their huge $$ increases.

edited to add: honestly, working in a tourist area would STINK. Europeans rarely tipped me b/c they weren't accustomed to it, and often tourists took the attitude "we won't see that server again!" I don't know if that is the case all these years later, though.

 

[KellyNY]

Just because you don't like the statistics doesn't make them false. Do some research, not of this information is hard to find or verify. The counterfeit industry is huge and it's very harmful. Just because someone wouldn't spend the money on a real designer bag, doesn't justify supporting criminal activity. Had they spent the $25 on a legitimate brand from Wal-Mart, rather than a cheap Chanel knock off, the money stays legal. It's arguments like yours that lead people to underestimate the impact of their actions. It may only be one purse, but it's part of a much larger problem.

Yes, many other brands have problems. And many legitimate brands are made overseas or even with labor standards many of us would find shocking. Trying to source where your products is coming from is part of being a socially conscious shopper. Again, I'm sorry you don't like the facts, but they are true.

I have nothing against facts, I have a question. Why those replica bags, watches, jewerly are so widely available online. They do not sell them on Canal Street in NY anymore, they openly sell them online. Just enter Dior bags for example, you will get couple of real bags sites and tons of replicas, right in the name of site. Why nobody arrests them. They do provide, email, payment info and so on. Why aren't they busted. Just a bit weird to me.

 

[Duckyiam71]

I sometimes wish mine were fakes. I am a recovering shoppaholic and I have 15 designers bags that were easily $200 a piece. I use them everyday and I love them but it is a constant reminder of the amount of money that I spent. I have been offered knock offs from the trunks of cars but even at $75 they were still expensive to me. But I wil say, I have not bought a new bag in 3 years because the designers are very well made.

 

[Sandy321]

DS and DIL bought me a purse from a boutique going out of business - it was a "chanel" bag they got "cheap" - - well it had a serial number in it (along with all the chanel labels, etc) so they told me it was a knock off (per the price) but with a serial number - I went online - it was real!!

I didnt tell them till this Christmas!! DIL was shocked "do you think the Kate Spade bag I bought is also real" um yes...

 

[Boxley]

Just curious.

On another board I frequent, a poster asked where in the Caribbean, she could find the best and the cheapest knock off purses.

My question is, why do you want them? I'm not rich, by any means. But, when I find a purse I want, I watch for sales, ( basically stalking it waiting for a deal ) and buy when I'm happy with what I'm paying. I have several ( expensive ) bags, but I use one for a while, pack it up in my closet, use another and keep switching out. So, they last a long time.

It seems to me that the knock offs would be cheap, poor quality and ( I'm sorry, but it's true ) people CAN tell the difference. So, if you can't afford ( or chose not to pay ) the cost of a designer bag, why not just get a nice bag at Kohls or such and be happy with it, instead of buying a piece of ( IMO ) cheap junk?

I know when I was on the Wonder this spring, and we docked in Nassau, DD wanted to run to the straw market to look at wraps. On the way in, I heard a vendor comment to another vendor to "See, that lady over there has a real bag"....

So, if you are a fan of knock offs..just why? Help me understand.

Maybe they just like the style?


Maybe they don't care if a snarky hag is judging them by the cost of their purse. To measure your worth by the things you carry and buy and also to judge those who do is fake and cheap.

 

[pigletto]

I'm not sure which is worse, spending a grand or more on a bag, or wanting people to think you did.

Very true.
It's a flippin' purse!!!
Who cares??????
Certainly not me. Perhaps that makes me weird. And I am just fine with that.