I really tried refraining from writing this post (in fear of being blacklisted by the fashion industry), but I refuse to be muted by elitist fashionistas, one part of fashion which has always made me question my allegiance to the industry.
I was browsing Instagram and came across a gorgeous outfit posted by Susie Bubble, which she captioned "Spot the fake in Mong Kok malls. @christopherkanestudio HK style". When I read it, I thought maybe she was making light of the fake, but when I read further down, I found her response to a pro-counterfeit comment, "fakes are insulting and damaging to independent design". I couldn't help but feel disgusted and infuriated; I never imaged one of my favourite bloggers to have such a simple-minded, grotesque attitude. She preluded the comment with "would rather not buy either then", referring to very expensive C.Kanes jumpers VS. "fakes"...well that's not true because she's always kitted in designer gear, (not that it's a bad thing because I admire the craft in design), so was being hypocritical. Actually, there might be some truth in her comment if she gets sent free clothing, then she literally does buy neither. No wonder she's too above purchasing a...f..fake. EW. I can't believe I even wrote that word.
I understand that counterfeits can be seen to hinder an economy, in the sense that it's harder for brands to enter a market and grow if there are copies, but as a business-minded person myself, I still don't see them as "damaging" enough to be boycott copies.
If I ever had a brand that grew large enough to have imitators, I'd be elated that I'd reached such a level of success, and would never be so negative to find it "insulting". Plus, what is original these days? Everyone is inspired by each other, designers always influence the high street and street style inspires designers, I wouldn't be surprised if Kanes' collection was inspired by street style first, so imitations aren't far off from this. Also, some people...MOST people can't afford the luxury of designer clothing but still want to look presentable...maybe even stylish, so what is the problem in paying admiration towards a designer through buying something of a similar style to their brand? As for the economy, these small time markets who sell copies contribute to local economies, and it's not majorly crippling when the black market accounts of a huge percentage of unrecorded GDP - so counterfeits benefit in a macroeconomic way, too.
There's always going to be a huge enough market to continue the growth of luxury brands, for fakes to be ignored. Anyway, even if fakes were irradiated, the revenue wouldn't be transferred back to the designers if those buying the fakes couldn't afford their stuff in the first place. There would just be less fashionistas to add to the hype of how coveted a designer item is and a select few wearing fashion. And we all know fashion is predominantly based on mass consumption and throwaway fashion, even in high fashion clothing. So are counterfeits as bad as people make out?
I'm sure Susie didn't mean much of her comment, but maybe as such an influential fashion figure, she'd momentarily, just for one Michael Kors second, step out of her bubble and be more considerate about the little people and think twice before making such flippant comments.
Next she'll be anti faux fur because it's offensive to animals and damaging to the quality of their luxurious image.
This has been a really long post, but it's saved me from trolling all over her page, haha!
I'd love to hear any views about this, I know it's small but it just really annoyed me. Even if you disagree, I'd still like your insight!
Are you pro-fakes or anti-fakes?
P.S. PLEASE WINTOUR, STILL LOVE ME.
