Faced with the prospect of spending 2,000 dollars on a fake Birkin, the answer should be “No, no fake at any cost”. But evidently not everyone thinks so. In 2020, the fashion industry lost over $50 billion in potential sales to counterfeit merchandise. Now superfakes are in fashion, i.e. products that are incredibly similar to the original ones. So much so that it is very difficult to distinguish them. The difference is in the price: a real Hermès Birkin bag starts at $10,000. A superfake can cost up to 2,000. Report by La Conceria.

The era of superfakes

To recognize a superfake you need an expert eye and a high level of expertise in the sector. Superfake manufacturers are increasingly adept at replicating designer originals. They reproduce down to the smallest detail. A painstaking work that has its price. Superfakes, of course, are more expensive than a cheap imitation and are also more difficult to find than a banal flea market product.

Who likes to spend $2,000.

The super-imitations market is mainly fueled by young people. According to Business Insider, some Gen Z consumers consider buying fake products subversive. Like a rebellion against the luxury system and the prices it imposes. These young shoppers, born between 1997 and 2012, wear fakes with pride. They do this even though they could afford to buy an original model. Furthermore, social networks and the e-commerce boom caused by the pandemic have strengthened the imitation market. On Tik Tok it is not difficult to find a video that indicates where and how to buy dupes of bags, sneakers and cosmetics.

The dupes

“Dupes” is the abbreviation of “ duplicates ” and is used to indicate products that are economic alternatives to the originals. The legal quibble for which they would not be considered counterfeits is that they do not have the original brand or logo. They only copy its shape and model. They become illegal if they copy a patent – protected product. Superfakes, on the other hand, are products that are as identical as possible to the originals, including the logo. Both are “alternatives” to the original products.