Would you pay 1,000 euros for a fake Louis Vuitton bag?

Friday, 28 March 2025, 14:22

| Updated 17:10h.

The luxury industry is not going through its best moment. The great global uncertainties and the slowdown in the Chinese market, one of the pillars of world retail, have dragged the big companies in the sector to present their worst results in recent years. All of them, from Gucci to the French giant LVMH, are confident that 2025 will bring an upturn in sales after leaving behind a 2024 considered an ‘annus horribilis’.

The conglomerate that owns Dior, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and Loewe, among other brands, closed the first nine months of the previous financial year with a 2% drop in sales. This is the first major setback for the business since the pandemic. However, seen in perspective, the impact is even greater, given that the brands under the LVMH umbrella have depreciated by 30% since 2023. Alarm bells are ringing in the world of glamour. In fact, the situation of Kering, parent company of Gucci, Balenciaga and Saint Laurent, is not much better either. It ended the first six months of last year with an 11% drop in turnover. Sales of Gucci, its flagship, plummeted by 20%.

Never has luxury shone less brightly. Despite this disturbing picture, however, the exclusive fashion industry continues to generate enormous fascination. The affluent population is blinded by the logos of the big brands, seeing them as a symbol of distinction. Spaniards, on the other hand, who cannot afford to spend a lot, love counterfeits. Spain leads the European ranking in the purchase of imitations, behind only Bulgaria. “Many people buy copies to be accepted in certain social circles,” says Silvia Dal Ben, psychologist at Unobravo’s Clinical Manager, “According to a study by the Official College of Psychology of Madrid, users of fakes are usually people under 35 years of age who are looking for a feeling of belonging to elite groups and to project an image of success and sophistication”.

Losses of 5.7 billion

The economic impact of this illegal practice is enormous. According to the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), 20% of Spaniards have bought counterfeit products “intentionally” in the last twelve months compared to 24% of the population in Bulgaria. Counterfeiting generates annual losses of 5.7 billion euros and the destruction of almost 45,000 direct jobs.

Replica handbags are becoming more and more successful.

J. García

It is becoming increasingly difficult to crack down on this underground market. Replica watches, handbags, belts and briefcases are becoming more and more sophisticated. Even the presentation of the watch is faked when it reaches the customer, “which makes people believe that it is an original product. They take the trouble to give them serial numbers,” explains José Luis Gómez, chief inspector of intellectual and industrial property crimes of the National Police.

2.5%
of the global fashion trade

corresponds to fakes. Consumers want status and “social recognition as a form of integration and personal validation with luxury items, even if they are fake,” says Laura Villanueva, founder of the centre Psicologodemadrid.

In addition to the refinement of the copies, there is also a change in the profile of the new consumers of fake luxury. “People who have their own reputational status and who, if they were to wear a good quality counterfeit product, no one would question that what they are wearing is fake,” adds Gómez. Because that’s another one. The criminal organisations have adapted their ‘production’ to a client who is looking for “good quality” and who “will pay up to 1,000 euros for a fake Louis Vuitton bag,” says Gómez.

The sale of replicas is often driven from the legal fringes of the business, adds Judit Bussé, a Belgian intellectual property lawyer. “Firms like H&M and Zara look at the collections of prestigious designers and imitate them, but often so quickly that these designs are more likely to be available in the shops of the big chains before those of the designers themselves,” she says. Mango was recently ordered by the Paris court of appeal to pay two million euros in damages for “systematic” replicas of Céline pieces, says Bussé.

35
years

or under are the buyers of fakes. 54% are happy for others to wear counterfeits. 37% admit that they “wear them or would have no problem wearing them”.

The application of such lax legislation does little or nothing to help an industry that has found new enemies in influencers and social media, especially TikTok. They are called ‘influencers’ of the fake or ambassadors of replicas. Their seductive power has struck a chord with Generation Z after they “proudly” show off the imitations they buy online. Hundreds of young people shamelessly display Alexander McQueen sneakers, Moncler jackets or fake Bottega Veneta bags, encouraging people to buy them on different digital platforms. While authentic garments range from 500 to 6,000 euros, these replicas sell for around 200 euros. Due to TikTok’s ban on “posting, sharing and sending any content that infringes copyright”, the purchase of these fakes is channelled through hidden links that the protagonists distribute privately or via Telegram. With the help of Chinese counterfeit apps, they have increased their turnover by more than 25%.

Ambassadors’ of the false

The acceptance of counterfeits among young people has reached a ceiling that surprises experts. According to The Business of Fashion and the consultancy McKinsey&Co., 54% of young people “are fine with others wearing fakes” compared to 37% who admit that they “wear or would wear them. These are young people who openly and unabashedly display ultra-luxury knock-offs, particularly handbags. It reflects a significant change in Generation Z’s attitude towards brands and retail,” says Pedro Mir Bernal, a specialist in consumer behaviour. Their strong social and environmental awareness leads them to question the practices of the luxury industry as they perceive them as “elitist and unsustainable. Authenticity, a fundamental value for these young people, is being redefined: it is no longer a question of the authenticity of the product, but of personal honesty to admit that it is a counterfeit.

“Criminal gangs tailor counterfeits to a customer who is now looking for good quality”

While they have always existed, the purchase of imitations – the second most profitable criminal activity after arms trafficking – for the first time is a “proud purchase in a digital environment increasingly plagued by fake clothes. Are we witnessing the beginning of a revolution in the perception of luxury or is it a passing phase of youth rebellion? Only time will tell,” Mir Bernal predicts. Faced with this scenario, young people and influencers care little about buying clothes of dubious quality. “The important thing is to wear the logo big, even if it’s fake,” says Mir.

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