‘There’s a major difference in price, but apart from that are there really any differences?’
For some people this is obvious, especially if you are only used to shopping with luxury brand at those kind of price points, not spending £50 in Zara on a jumper and that’s you ‘splashing out’. However, over recent years, the last couple in particular, there is more and more merging between luxury design’s and them being recreated and sold on the high street. But what does this mean for luxury brands? Does it make their designs are less desirable if they are being replicated and sold for a fraction of the price? For people who do shop luxury, are they going to still want to wear that season or range because its now seen as ‘same old’?
One of my favourite high street stores (probably THE favourite) is Zara, and i know that goes for most people who shop on the high street across women’s, men’s and children’s wear. However, they are one of the main culprits for copying luxury designers and selling them at a fraction of the price. For someone like me who loves luxury but cant afford (unlikely wont ever!) to but luxury labels, i get to feel like im wearing something similar to what’s seen in Fashion shows around the world. Great for me…not so good news for designers. If i was working for Balenciaga and Zara basically replicated my design, i cant deny i would be livid, yet high street brands and consistently getting away with it. But, apart from the label, whats the difference? Are they eco friendly? Are they better quality? Are the materials locally sourced?
“Designerwear is considered to be of a finer quality and the names and designs are instantly recognisable. The truth is, however, that many of the cheaper designer lines are made in the same factories, using the same materials and processes as the clothes made by many of the most renowned names in high-street-wear. Thus, is the price difference really warranted?”
We have designers such as Gucci, Saint Laurent, Adidas, Stella McCartney and Tom Ford as well as many more that have been replicated on the high street. This isn’t a secret in the slightest — and i’m sure if we knew 100% that the replica dress we bought from Zara at £40 was made in the same factory to designer charging £300…i know which one i would go if it all came down to a small logo. But at the same time, i cant help but feel cheated if their is a luxury designer who I admire and love their style, and knowing it’s made in the same environment as high street clothing. The price point is indifferent when the only difference is the name. If the quality isn’t better, and the materials used aren’t more sustainable, or there are only a select few to purchase, there’s not much difference.
Many people who shop luxury will no doubt insist there is a distinct difference between the real thing and the high street knock off — you would if you had spent £500 and not £50 right? Back in November 2018, America budget shoe brand Payless, posed as a luxury footwear brand, altering their brand name to ‘Palessi’. This was possibly one of the best and maybe worst social experiments i have witnessed in the Fashion industry. Posing as a luxury footwear brand, recreating and replicating a luxury store environment with a different font made shoppers believe that the footwear was worth the luxury price points it was posing at.
“I would pay $400 or $500,” a woman says in a TV ad, holding a pair of $19.99 sneakers. Another shopper calls the Payless shoes “elegant and sophisticated.”
It is the best best because this is a prime example of how the change of logo, font and front of house experience can completely alter a brand, without changing how their products are manufactured or designed and how much it costs to make them. One shopper spent $640 on a pair of boots, representing a 1,800% markup. Of course, Payless was honest about the pop up and what shoppers had actually bought and the price points they are in their Payless store and provided refunds. But, the point of event was to remind shoppers that Payless’ affordable shoes are fashionable too. It’s one of the worst experiments though because it shows how easily shoppers can be persuaded to spend an extortionate amount of money on products that symbolise luxury, but are actually the same quality and manufacturing price of that on high street. Feel’s like you are being cheated on!
We do feel a sense of pride when we wear something that is designer and more up market, but also very unimpressed when we see someone wearing virtually the same product of cheaper value, and the differences are few and far between. Replicating luxury designer brands on the high street is only going to continue, especially since there doesn’t seem to be any repercussions to the well-known high street brands that do this on a regularly basis. The line between luxury and high street is becoming more and more vague in terms of quality of materials and manufacturing process. I think luxury brands will have to be more transparent as to why shoppers should spend a significant amount more on the real thing, if the only true difference is the logo.
Would you be happy to but a high street replica if it meant you could afford to spend more on other products, and not your months’ salary on one t-shirt? I think opinions will be very divided!
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