Imitation Game: How the Dupe Market Challenges the Luxury Industry
The term ‘Dupe’ refers to a similarly crafted product inspired by the original luxurious brand. These products, which are significantly more affordable, provide similar functionality. They are a boon for those who cannot afford the high price tags of luxurious products, offering them a chance to experience similar quality. This affordability empowers consumers, making them feel included in the luxury market. However, this affordability also poses a significant threat to the luxurious brands that create the original products. In this article, we will delve into the world of dupes, the associated term counterfeit goods, and the challenges they present to the luxury industry, with real-life examples.
What are dupes, and how are they different from counterfeit products?
I have seen some people get confused between dupes and counterfeit products, so first, I would like to make clear what these two types of products are. They seem like they are the same, but they are actually different.
The term ‘Dupe’ has gained significant traction, particularly on social media, where it is often used as a shorthand for ‘Duplicate’. These products, created by local companies or less expensive brands, offer duplicate versions of luxury products at significantly lower prices, making them increasingly popular among consumers.
On the other hand, counterfeit products are exact replicas of luxurious products but at a fraction of the cost. These are not to be confused with dupes. Counterfeiters go to great lengths to copy the brand’s logos, trademarks, and designs, creating fake products that try to mimic the company and the product. However, these products are of significantly lower quality and are illegal. They deceive customers and tarnish the reputation of the actual brand, making it crucial for consumers to be cautious and aware.
It’s important to note that companies that produce dupes are not claiming to produce the original luxurious product; they are creating a ‘similar’ product. These products are legal and do not use the original brand name or logo. Instead, they have their own brand name and manufacturing information, providing consumers with a legal and affordable alternative to the original luxury products.
So, it’s clear that dupe and counterfeit products are distinct categories. While dupes are legal, similar products that do not claim to be the original, counterfeit products are illegal, low-quality imitations that attempt to deceive customers. It’s important to note that buying and selling counterfeit products is illegal and can lead to legal consequences. On the other hand, purchasing and using dupes is legal and does not pose any legal risks to the consumer.
How did dupe culture gain popularity?
We live in the era of social media where influencers are ruling, and their role in promoting dupes cannot be overstated. Dupes have seen rapid growth in popularity, largely due to the influence of social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook. Influencers and content creators do paid promotions for these brands that produce dupe products and promote them in videos, reels and posts. Our chronically online audience, who thrive on experiencing the luxuries of reputed brands, are the first to buy these products. People realized they could have a similar experience with a luxurious product without spending a fortune. Influencers, via their product review content, highly influence the public to approach these affordable alternatives by recommending and rating them.
Even online shopping apps like Amazon, Flipkart, and Meesho are filled with millions of dupe products that look like branded products, enticing the public to buy them at reasonable or even far cheaper rates.
GenZ is adamant about experiencing luxuries, but since most of them still need a high source of income to buy original products, they are ready to go for budget-friendly dupes.
Dupes: A Threat to the Luxury Industry
Dupes might benefit the consumers, but they pose a significant threat to the luxury industry. With the increase in dupe products and their demand, they have taken a significant position in the industry today. They are a knocked-off version of the original piece, and their price is much lower than that of the original. Due to their low cost and similar efficiency, a large proportion of customers have shifted to the consumption of dupe products. This undermines the significance of the original brand. Luxurious brands have a reputation, and their products are exclusive. They create products using high-quality materials, and skilled professionals design them. Their original idea gets copied when a dupe is created. Hence, dupes also adversely affect creativity and originality. This should be a cause for concern for all professionals in the luxury industry.
Since dupes have become more popular, the original product’s popularity has declined. Dupes’ being more affordable has reduced their demand in the market, resulting in the devaluation of luxury products. Customers will compare the prices of both products and wonder if the real piece is really worth it, more likely to settle for the more affordable version. This raises ethical concerns about the impact of our purchasing decisions on the livelihoods of those who create original, high-quality products. These luxury brands may lose sales and diminish their growth, which can have ethical implications for the industry and the people who work in it.
When an original piece is imitated and sold more than the original one, it demotivates the designer and fashion professionals who spent their blood, sweat and tears creating a prestige masterpiece. Hence, companies might hesitate to invest in new ideas due to imitating their original idea.
While they don’t copy the luxury brand’s logo or trademark, they might create a similar logo or use elements and aesthetics of that original company that could mislead people while buying products.
Case study of Lulumelon: Creative solution to deal with dupes
Lulumelon is an American clothing company. When they saw their leggings being duped and sold for cheaper rates, they devised a creative solution to deal with the dupes.
They hosted a “Dupe Swap” event in May 2023 in Los Angeles. Customers who bought the dupes of their leggings could come to their store and try their original leggings. If they liked the original leggings, they could take them home for free in exchange for their dupe ones.
They hosted this event to address the knockoff versions of their leggings, showcase why the original one is better and more exclusive, and demonstrate their strong commitment to quality. By hosting this event, they interacted with customers and built a brand-consumer bond and trust. The event also created a buzz on social media, and they successfully conveyed their message.
Conclusion
Dupes are knocked off and budget-friendly versions of the luxurious products. Created by less expensive brands, dupes offer customers a similar experience to a luxurious product. Dupe culture has evolved a lot recently, which has posed a threat to the luxury industry. These imitated products undermine the exclusivity and significance of luxury brands as people have cheaper dupes of the original product that give them a decent experience at a much more reasonable price. Though they provide easy access to knockoff versions of these brands, they are less than the original products. Those products are expensive because they are made from premium quality materials or ingredients and manufactured by professional and talented professionals. Nothing can beat the original. Dupes might be affordable, but in the end, they are still the imitated and less good version of the original luxury product.
