Fake goods are flooding the market in all areas. Nowadays, shoes are the most counterfeited item in the world.
Fake shoes are one of the biggest counterfeit industries and account for approximately $1.2 billion in sales, which shows this industry’s huge potential.
Many famous shoe brands, such as Adidas, Nike, and Converse, are being copied in many countries. Fake shoes are currently thriving and show no signs of being stopped in the future.
Why are fake shoes bad? Let’s find the answer through the article below!
Table of Contents
Why Are Fake Shoes Bad?
Despite having the same appearance as the original and being sold at a significantly lower price, fake shoes have a lot of negative effects, such as:
- Low Quality
- Undermines Innovation
- Supports Child Labor
- Promotes Organized Crime
- Impact on Employment
- Impact on Global Economy
- Counterfeit Items Do Not Support Taxes
- Introduce Dangerous Products Into the Market.
- Illegal Action.
The counterfeiting area is growing since many buyers prefer to get the high-end designer look of a real product for a lower price.
However, many do not know that favoring fake goods can bring a lot of harm, such as killing the reputation of legitimate businesses. Further, it significantly affects the global economy.
In addition, counterfeits are often made from poor materials, allowing them to be sold cheaply. This material can affect your overall experience and health.
Cheap Quality
The saying “You get what you pay for” is true in all cases, including in the shoe industry. One of the reasons why authentic products are more expensive is they are designed with the highest quality of materials to last longer.
Knock-offs or fake shoes will often fall apart after little to no use. Counterfeit products are uncomfortable and cause injuries because of the poor materials.
Undermines Innovation
If brands don’t receive protection of their intellectual property, innovators won’t be able to keep making products as they’re unable to reap their rewards.
So supporting fake goods is synonymous with killing innovation and creativity.
So by favoring and buying the authentic product, you can ultimately guarantee that these brands will keep manufacturing their products and constantly innovating and improving.
Supports Child Labor
Most counterfeit and fake products are constructed in foreign sweatshops, which promote indentured servitude and child labor. There is no doubt that it is one form of modern-day slavery.
Most sweatshops are notorious for disregarding basic human laws and child labor rights as they pay nothing to capitalize on their profits.
Promotes Organized Crime
The presence of organized gangs and crime in the counterfeit area has long been one of the easy ways to launder their dirty money.
Moreover, manufacturing counterfeit goods has become one of the most lucrative methods for organized crime groups to make money, supporting other things like the illegal sale of sex and drug trafficking.
Impact on Employment
In addition to negatively affecting the reputation and revenue of a legitimate brand, fake goods harm the US job market and foreign countries.
Much research has shown that approximately 2.5 million jobs have been killed by the fake market, with about 750,000 jobs in the US alone.
Impact on Global Economy
Undoubtedly, purchasing counterfeit and fake products significantly affects global and local economies.
Statistics show that American businesses lose around $200 billion annually because of counterfeit and fake items.
Many foreign companies, such as Samsung, lose revenue yearly because counterfeit and fake electronics flood the global market.
Fake Good Don Not Support Taxes
So counterfeit and fake goods do not support taxes, significantly damaging local and global economies.
As we all know, the government uses taxes to pay for essential things like building roads and highways and funding hospitals, parks, city schools, and other social and economic programs.
Introduces Dangerous Products Into the Market
Unlike genuine brands, counterfeiters do not care about your addiction and well-being. Instead, they only care about making a profit.
Many fake products are made from low-quality, cheap materials that can lead to injury and affect your health.
In addition, as fake shoes are made from low-quality, poor materials, they will often break down significantly faster.
So buying them turns out to cost you more than investing in genuine products.
Counterfeit and fake footwear has been noted to harm the foot and ankle, while goods made with poor batteries have been known to explode suddenly.
Ruined the Overall Experience
Wearing fake shoes does not give you the wonderful experience that real goods bring.
The fact is that fake shoes often only imitate the look of authentic products and give up on the technologies and features. Each brand has its own proprietary features and technologies, which are expensive and difficult to imitate.
Illegal Action
Producing counterfeit shoes can be considered a copyright violation as they plagiarize others’ work. So when you purchase or wear counterfeit goods, you are illegal.
If you use fake shoes abroad, you may be punished as the law against fake goods is severe in many countries. Outlaws can be punished by paying fines of up to tens of thousands of dollars or imprisonment for up to three years.
Why Do People Buy Fake Shoes?
To be fair, everyone likes to own genuine stuff. But what barriers prevent them from reaching consumers? Let’s find out!
Help You Stay on Trend
The fashion industry is one of those industries that change trends regularly.
Therefore, constantly buying on-trend fashion items, including shoes, is impossible for those on a tight budget.
For these people, investing in fake goods is the simplest and cheapest way to keep up with the trend. Regular people wouldn’t know that they are using fakes.
Real shoes typically come in many colors and looks, so you might want to have a pair for every outfit.
If a person is searching for a model that is already sold out or out of their budget, fake shoes can be one of the best ways for them to gain the look they want.
Save Money
The biggest reason why many buyers, especially those on a tight budget, buy fake shoes is the low price. Designer brands often sell a single pair of shoes for hundreds or even thousands, while a pair of fake shoes cost you times less.
So for most users, designer clothes and shoes are not affordable. With designer replicas, buyers can get a luxury designer at a much lower price.
Often Identical to the Real Thing
Believe it or not, fake shoes not only look like the real ones, but they may be identical! As a result, many people are tempted to pay less for fake shoes that look like authentic ones, despite their poor quality.
What Are the Consequences of Trafficking Fake Shoes?
In the US, accidentally buying counterfeit goods is not considered illegal, but selling them to another unsuspecting buyer after you realize they are fake goods will be illegal.
Remember that knowingly trading counterfeit products will be sued by a law enforcement agency. If convicted, you may have to deal with a fine of up to two million dollars and imprisonment for up to ten years.
In addition to facing charges for selling or trafficking fake goods, you may also face civil charges for unfair competition, copyright infringement, trademark dilution, and trademark infringement.
Difference Between Knock-off and Counterfeit Items
Knock-offs are designed to mimic legitimate or authentic products without misrepresenting the logo. That way, buyers will know they are not buying from the authentic brand.
On the flip side, counterfeit/fake items are designed to replicate authentic products and mislead buyers into believing they are buying authentic products. These models are more stealthy and created to deceive buyers.
Fashionistas with astute eyes can easily spot the difference between a fake model and a counterfeit item by looking at minor details, such as stitching.
However, most often can’t tell the difference because counterfeit items are increasingly similar to authentic products in appearance.
The Bottom Line
After considering all things above, now is the time to stop buying fake shoes and switch to buying the originals instead. While buying fake shoes can save you money initially, authentic products are a wise investment.
Authentic products are more durable and last longer in most cases. In addition, they are made from safe and premium materials and come with features that fake ones are far from getting.
Quality comes with a price. Looking closely, you will know that the price gap between fake and original products is not too high. So you should spend a little more to get genuine products with better qualities that last for a time.