Fight Consumerism and Be Green 101: Can you spot the fake? Post # 5

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Can you spot the fake? Post # 5

Lets face it...we're all guilty of buying knockoffs.... heck i have a pair of knockoff converse, vans, and a Le Sport Sac bag that my grandma got me from the Philippines. To be frank, i don't really care about whether if an item is real or fake as long as it works, lasts me, and looks good. There are certain items that can pass off as the real things, but there are some that just don't. However, in this weeks reading "Knockouts of Knockoffs:" The Global Implication of Fashion Piracy" by Melissa Decker, we learn of the effects that counterfeiting merchandise has on the fashion economy and world. I recently went to the Philippines this past summer for vacation; Philippines is definitely one of the top places to buy counterfeit merchandise. I went with my cousin to a place called the "Dibisorya", its basically a really large mall (but think flea market style) that sells counterfeit goods... I'm serious, 4 floors of counterfeit merchandise! But back to the the real issue of fake merchandise. The selling and buying of these counterfeit merchandise is affecting the business aspect of fashion. "The depths of the counterfeiting trade are staggering; it is estimated that between five to ten percent of global commerce is composed of trademark piracy accounts" (Decker pg. 6) WOW!!! 5-10 percent of global commerce is composed of fake merchandise sellers; for all we know we have been buying fake goods and believing they are real. In

Decker's essay, she talks about how the internet is one of the helping elements in the counterfeit world. I've bought stuff on the internet before and it never crossed my mind whether it was real or fake; however I've never bought expensive things online so I don't think I've been fooled yet. However, there are many cases in which websites advertise name brand products on sale and people fall for it not knowing if the goods are real or not. Sometimes websites will simply put "buyer beware". The effect of fakes takes a good chunk out of the fashion business' global trade, " a recent report demonstrated the devastation caused through noting... "in a five-year period when global trade grew by 47 percent, the market for counterfeit goods increased threefold." ( Galbraith) " (Decker pg. 7) I was reading an article online from business week about how fake Louis Vuitton bags can be spotted; the article said that a fake LV bag can be spotted by simply just looking at the person holding it. REALLY?! what if the person just wanted to look laid back or was just lazy and didn't want to have to change bags? MIT researcher said that it depends on "social cues" and that fakes can be easily spotted because higher class people could pull it off better. PSHHHH whatever, I think it depends on the person who uses the damn bag... if you look good and you can pull it off- PROPS to ya! This whole social status thing is ridiculous! Oh.... remember that Counterfeit Mall I was talking about in the beginning of my blog? I went inside and this guy goes up to me and asks "Those Nike's are real huh?- can I buy them off you?" -- really now...even if they were used, what people will do to have the real things, I'm just glad he didn't rip them off my feet and runaway with them!

Compact Challenge...

Didn't buy anything except a lot of food because my fridge at home died on me and made all my food go bad! grrrrr!!!! T_T My mother tempted me this past weekend and asked if I wanted new boots, but i said NO! It looks like I'll be using those rain-boots I bought again this week, its going to start raining on tuesday and won't end until...i dont really know when cuz the weather people only predicted until friday. But its raining all week, don't forget your umbrellas people! Being cold and wet does not feel good at all! A dollar a day is making my piggy fat!!!

<---- my piggy bank!