wsoxrebel

obxgirl, but I don't carry a status bag! Truce?

wondering

i am just wondering....do you think the people working in the lv sweatshop are making better wages than the people in the knockoff shops? i have heard the argument that the bags are all made in the same place by the same semi-slave labor. i am not taking a stand here. i just know some people do use this as a justification. are some of the knockoffs stolen from actual lv factories? it seems like some are quite a bit better quality than others. i am betting i can get the answers from this discussion i have always wanted to know.

cigalechanta

this is much ado about nothing. Let those who want an obvious designer bag carry it. Why should you care? But I agree about fakes because of the stealing of a well made bag peddled off with an inferior one gives them a bad rep. I have a gucci, two Hermés, a few Pradas, but you would never know. There are no obvious logos or patterns, It's the quality and the tactile feel I like. And they are things I buy in the milestones of my life.

obxgirl

wsoxrebel, Of course, truce! I don't carry a status bag either that I know of.

cigalechanta

Wandering, at one time Coach bags wer great now they are made in China, cheap labor but high prics for us. It's the law to be labeled where something is made. When I order on line, I always ask what "Imported" means. When it's Italy or France, you know they get a decent salary but you will pay the same price from these poorer countries with low , low, pay.

wondering

cigalechanta, thanks for the info...that makes perfect sense...i am going to be sure and check labels from now on. not that i buy designer, but on everything...thanks again

icithecat

Being a guy from a small town in the Ozarks, I cannot tell a LV from a BJ.

However, I can tell top grain from top dressed at twenty paces.

Quality of materials and design are more than name to me.

Marilyn

It's actually a bit more complicated. Products imported into the US must state the country of origin. However, I don't believe that other countries necessarily have the same regulations. Something could be made in China, imported into France, and then imported into the US labeled "product of France."

mollyjar

I think I should clarify what I said earlier. I do not support the theft of intellectual property. Making a product that is identical to one that has already been copyrighted/patented is illegal and unethical, but making something in the style of an existing product in terms of clothing is a different story. If it were illegal to make somthing that looks like (but doesn't have the name plastered across it) were illegal then Target would be out of business. There is a fine line between copying a style and completely ripping of a design, and it can be difficult to judge when this line is crossed. As for my comments on the knock off competition, I was trying to explain that for a certain demographic (18-25 year old women who aren't from a major city) knock-offs can be stylish for the simple fact that they are knock-offs. No one is trying to pretend they are real, it's more about the adventure of going to a city that is large enough to have a market for them (and no cities down here in North Carolina have them). What it boils down to for me is I like certain styles, but cannot afford to spend more than $30 for a purse, so if I can get a cheap purse that is similar to the brand name one I buy it. I don't expect it to be high quality or last a long time because chances are it will not be in style among my peers for more than a few months. The friend who "won" the knock off competition with the glue on logo won based on the uniqueness of her experience and the cheap nature of it, she honestly didn't care which logo was glued on and really just liked the bag regardless of who designed it.

Marilyn

Copies are one thing; knock offs are another. If it has a label or logo that indicates it was made by a specific company, and it was, in fact, <i>not</i> made by that company, then it is a knock off and a theft of intellectual property.

donnae_b

Sacre De Couer there is a guy selling them, also we saw somebody right by the Arc de Tri. They ask 25 euros but they will sell them for ten.

cigalechanta

Hey let up. I think mollyjar and girlfriend now know what they said, we said, and clarified it so let's get on.

Marilyn

Since the topic of the thread is &quot;Louis Vuitton Knock Offs,&quot; cigalechanta, I'm not sure what else there is to &quot;get on&quot; with.

gino

I think she means Mz M. you have run it to the ground.

cigalechanta

thanks gino, but I don't need anyone to defend me from saying that girlfriend asked a question and the rest of us either gave her advise or dumped on her, and so now to move on unless girlfriend wants to hear more.

nocinonut

I used to have an office in Beverly Hills and we would see women with the designer bags in every restaurant, shopping, etc.

It was more comical watching them with their designer bags than it was impressive. Most of the women wore them to be part of an elite clique, sort of like look at me, I am one of you.

I find them overpriced and think it is sort of silly, there are so many more important things to think about than impressing people with your purse.

benderbabe

It's been amusing reading this thread. I can see validity in most of what has been said.

I personally have never bought a knock-off. I saved up big and bought a real Gucci handbag when I was 16, because I really wanted one. Now that I am 35 I tend to like a bag for how it feels, the quality, how much I like it and how functional it is, and haven't really bought upscale brands for 10 years.

However, most of the expensive brand companies charge ridiculous amounts for their products...they're probably making 800% profit on them, just because the bags have a name. Ridiculous. And it would not bother me a bit to make a statement to them that they should charge REALISTIC prices for their bags by buying a knock-off occasionally, if it was the sort of thing I wanted, which it is not.

There was an interesting article in the newspaper a few weeks ago about knock-offs and how people who can really afford expensive bags, etc., almost never buy the ones with the &quot;knock-you-over-with-the-designer-name-all-over-the-bag&quot; styles, because that has now become tacky from so many wannabes buying those types of designer bags (or knockoffs).

I must admit, I'm so bloody sick of those stupid Vuitton bags that have the whole name written accross them in 2 or 3 lines. There are SO MANY of those around, I would think that these people who own them, and are obviously obsessed with image, would already have had to throw them out, as they are ALREADY SO PASSE.

The last nice bag that I bought was a coach &quot;flight bag&quot;, about 10 years ago, when they still made them good quality. I bought it to use for work and carry my laptop in, as it was plenty big enough for that.

I bought it because the leather was the nicest leather I've ever seen, and I paid US$450 for it at the time. I am still using that bag EVERY SINGLE DAY for work. The leather is so good it has lasted even with ME using it.

Just now as it is starting to get a bit shoddy, Coach has started to make bags out of this same leather again! I am hoping they will come out with the flight bag again, because I would not hesitate to spend that kind of money on it ASAP! My husband bought one of their new bags out of the same leather and it is fantabulous!

Anyway, that's my 2 cents!

singlegalzzz

I'm not bothered by companies that make bags or products charging GAZILLION because they have built good brands and marketing. After all, it's all supply and demand, right? No one forced anyone to purchase $600 bags, and anyone willing to shell out that much for a bag -- well, it's their money so they can dispose it however they want.

What's my point...I guess I have a problem with people trying to achieve a status that they're not by buying knock-offs. Okay, I don't have a problem per se, I just don't understand why anyone would do that. And I don't care to understand...

Time to sleep.

elizabeth_reed

I don't get the whole knock-off thing, either. I'm all for quality of leather. I have an assortment of older Coach bags from the days of their &quot;classic&quot; styles. Some were full price, a few from outlets, the last one from a second-hand store. They're all so fabulous. (My friends buy some dorky, cheap-o bag every year or two.)

mclaurie

Well, as usual, I always learn something new here. Knock off <i>parties</i>??? Who's running these? Who's supplying the product? Is it the same type stuff you see on the street in NYC??? What are the prices??

And John G., I'd never heard of Goyard. Did a web search but I'm still confused. Is it a type of LV or a vintage name or ??? Thanks