The Fake McCoys

26 May,2009 08:50 AM IST |   |  Shashank Shekhar

Recession be damned, the young can't give up the good life, even if it means shifting from real to fake. With salary and job cuts squeezing wallets, many youngsters are buying fake products to keep up their style quotient, says Shashank Shekhar


Recession be damned, the young can't give up the good life, even if it means shifting from real to fake. With salary and job cuts squeezing wallets, many youngsters are buying fake products to keep up their style quotient, says Shashank Shekhar

They have seen it, bought it, flaunted it but are now too ashamed to admit they can't afford it anymore. So, they are faking it.

We are talking about the good life here, which the upwardly mobile, young, working Delhiite had become used to.

Till the recession hit, he was splurging on branded clothes and stylish accessories. But now, he is making secret trips to the grey market to maintain his "expensive" lifestyle.

Through the fake mirror: A customer trying out a pair of glares at Janpath in New Delhi

If shopkeepers at Delhi's grey markets are to be believed, the demand for fakes of branded products has gone up by 25 to 30 per cent in the recent months.


And instead of cheap imitations, buyers are demanding exact replicas of new models of brands being launched in the market.

Gaurav Singhal, working as a manager with an MNC in Gurgaon, is a member of the fake clan.

Once a regular at plush South Delhi malls, Singhal is now shopping at fake paradise Palika Bazar, courtesy the recent 20 per cent cut in his salary.

From Palika he has picked up the latest model of his favourite Swiss watch brand at one-third the price of its real version.

"We have not undergone any salary-cut so I can't say if employees from our company are buying replica products.

But I know of many others who are doing so. Brand-conscious youngsters don't want to compromise on style.
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And high-quality replicas are a smart alternative to the expensive real product," said Harsh Vardhan Singh, an HR manager with a retail chain.

As good as real

With increasing demand, the shopkeepers too have become careful about the quality of the fakes.

"There has been an increase of 20 to 30 per cent in demand and most of the buyers are young men. We get our watches from Southeast Asian countries and stock all the good brands.

Due to the cheap rates and high quality, buyers have graduated from the first-rung Rolex, Rado, Armani and Tissot to super-premium luxury watch brands like Breguet, Baume et Mercier, Breitling, Corum, Fendi, Girard's Perregaux, Raymond Weil and Ulysse Nardin.

No showroom can distinguish between the original and replica. We also offer one year's free service," said Ravi, a shopkeeper at Palika Bazaar.

Fake, but not cheap

The new customer, however, doesn't want a cheap fake. He has an eye for details.
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"I have been selling replicas of international watch brands for the last seven years. But the taste of buyers has changed drastically over the last few months.

There has been a sharp increase in buyers who come to us with photographs of the latest models. We deliver them within 15 to 20 days.

Most of these customers have used the real products so they are discerning while buying replicas," said Amjad, another shopkeeper at Palika Bazaar.

Not only watches, the demand for fake sunglasses, purses and premium pens are on the rise as well. And with these products too shopkeepers agree the customer has specific demands.
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"Young professionals are asking for stylish shades with the brand name etched on the sunglass frame.

Earlier, the demand was more for low-quality products but now we have buyers who are ready to pay as much as Rs 1,000 for luxury sunglasses," said Ullas, a shopkeeper from Janpath.

Expert speak

Social scientist Shiv Vishwanathan has an explanation for this fake-drive. "Most young professionals come from the middle-class and are status-conscious.

For them, it's very important to maintain a certain standard of life. So they buy replicas. Authenticity doesn't matter much.

Germany saw a similar social trend when the television was launched. Many people used to hang television antennas outside their homes even if they didn't have a set to maintain their social status."
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Recession salary job cuts stylish branded clothes lifestyle