Saturday, January 24, 2009

Imitation is the sincerest form of...luxury

By Alice Alina Allison Amanda Amy Amber Andrea Angela Ann Anita Barbara Betty

Many people wonder: Is there any difference between a replica Louis Vuitton handbag and an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag? Here's the straightforward answer: the price. A replica Louis Vuitton handbag is a lot more reasonably priced -- and the best part is that it has exactly the same quality standards as an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag.

There are people who have the opinion that an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag is of better quality than a replica Louis Vuitton handbag. What they don't know is that many fashion brands, including Louis Vuitton, often produce their merchandise in foreign countries like China or India because labor and materials are a lot more economical there.

Many critics claim that replica Louis Vuitton handbags are not made in Italy. But perhaps if you examine an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag more closely, you may find that a "Made in China" label somewhere inside, hidden in a place that is very difficult to find, such at the bottom of the bag.

Even if you don't find the telltale label, that doesn't mean that the authentic Louis Vuitton handbag is truly made in Italy, as many fashion boutiques like to boast. Perhaps you may find that up to 90 percent of the Louis Vuitton bag was made in China and the final 10 percent was added in Italy, thus allowing it to earn a "Made in Italy" label. Or perhaps the manufacturers produced the authentic Louis Vuitton handbag in Italy using illegal foreign laborers. Under these circumstances, can anyone fairly say that an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag is superior to a replica Louis Vuitton handbag?

Just think about this: an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag is made in a factory in a foreign land. Lowly-paid laborers work on these authentic Louis Vuitton handbags. In the same neighborhood, another factory just down the road is making replica Louis Vuitton handbags, using the materials of the same quality as the other factory.

The handbag costs about $100 to produce in both factories. But the authentic Louis Vuitton handbag is then sold to you in a high-end retail outlet for $2000. The replica Louis Vuitton handbag is made available to buyers on the Internet at a much lower price.

You are getting the same product -- but an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag costs you exorbitantly more than the replica Louis Vuitton handbag. But the bottom line is that an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag is not necessarily of higher quality than a Louis Vuitton replica. Both are exactly the same.

So is there a reasonable explanation for this price differential? Louis Vuitton will justify the drastically higher price tag by saying that an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag bears its prestigious, unmistakable brand name. But Shakespeare was right when he wrote: "What's in a name?" The truth is that the same brand name will be displayed prominently on your replica Louis Vuitton handbag as well!

So now you know the real difference between an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag and a replica Louis Vuitton handbag. That's right: an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag may cost you an entire paycheck, but a replica Louis Vuitton handbag won't! So, really, the choice is crystal clear: get a replica Louis Vuitton handbag! - 15359

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