Once scorned, knockoff luxury goods now sources of pride

Gen Z youths in Europe and the United States are unabashedly buying and comparing knockoff goods based on their quality and similarity to the original designs.

Pictured is a counterfeit Chanel bag attempted to be smuggled to Korea from China and confiscated by Incheon officials in August. [YONHAP]

Why buy the real thing when its knockoff counterpart does the job?

This is the consumer mindset taking over Gen Z youths in Europe and the United States, with TikTok influencers unabashedly buying and comparing knockoff goods based on their quality and similarity to the original designs, according to a Washington Post report.

But whereas counterfeit goods were once considered a shameful, cheap replacement for luxury fashion and beauty items, they have now sparked a competition of sorts to see who can snatch up the best bargains in products ranging from clothes, shoes, makeup and even thermal hairbrushes. Unlike before, they are something to be proud of.

They’re not even called knockoffs or counterfeits anymore. Instead, they are called “dupes” — short for “duplicates” — a Gen Z rebrand as cheaper versions of the real thing.

In a survey last month of 2,216 U.S. adults by U.S. polling company Morning Consult, 49 percent of Gen Z respondents said they bought counterfeit goods knowing they were fake. This was higher than the average among all adults, which was 31 percent.

In a European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) survey of 222,021 people aged 15 to 24 last year, 37 percent said they had bought at least one counterfeit good over the previous year. This was an increase of 14 percent compared to the same survey in 2019.

It’s not just numbers. On social media, influencers and users alike “humblebrag” about their new purchases of fake Hermès bags, Chanel purses and Gucci loafers that they say pass as the real thing — and for less than 185th of the original price.

“The quality of counterfeits that are coming out today are just so much better than 20 years ago,” Entrupy CEO Vidyuth Srinivasan said in a report by Adweek. He added that the convincing counterfeits lead consumers to reason, “Maybe this fake thing doesn’t look as bad because people don’t even know [that it’s fake].”

However, the production and selling of imitation goods violates intellectual property rights and is punishable by law in Korea and the United States.

In certain European countries, including France, Italy and Switzerland, the “luxury capitals of the world,” even buying and wearing counterfeit goods are illegal, and people can be fined when caught wearing them.

“People believe [buying counterfeits is] a victimless crime, like a parking ticket,” said Srinivasan to Adweek. “A lot of people think of it that way, but it’s not the case.”

BY KIM JU-YEON, LIM SUN-YOUNG [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]