Beauty, fashion, leisure, food, travel: “dupes”, these cheap imitations of luxury products, are now everywhere and delighting the younger generation. With one exception… A study by YPulse, a specialist in brand support among young consumers, reveals that the French are much less favored than the rest of Europe, due to their commitment to quality, craftsmanship and knowledge. how, three essential values ​​in their eyes.
Started a few years ago, the “impostor” trend exploded during 2023 with a proliferation of products and types of products manufactured to imitate more expensive ones. Just go to social networks including TikTok, Snapchat and Instagramto understand the scale of the phenomenon that now extends from fashion items to perfumes and skin care, including travel.
A recent report even reveals that more US and Canadian consumers aged 13-39 now own fake than luxury products. The hashtags #dupe and #dupes have generated 6.2 billion and 3.6 billion views on the Asian platform to date. A craze that worries young consumers more, but even not all, has been shown by a new survey conducted by the company YPulse.
Two thirds of Europeans aged 13 to 39 – Z and Millennials – have already bought at least one dupe. An average that could be higher without the reluctance of the French towards these cheap imitations.
While more than three-quarters of young Spaniards (77%), 70% of Italians, 69% of Germans and 65% of Britons say they have already bought an ass, this is ‘only’ the case for slightly less than one in two young French (48%). According to the experts in this report, this could be explained – at least in part – by the valorization in France of craftsmanship and knowledge, with great respect for quality products – and therefore much less for replicas.
“Data from the report shows that less than half of young French consumers say they are willing to sacrifice quality for lower prices,” the report said. “And although substitute products are not always of lower quality, the young French are particularly sensitive to luxury.
This proportion is much lower than in other European countries, especially compared to young Britons, two-thirds of whom would willingly sacrifice quality for lower prices. This is because French culture recognizes the value of spending on high-quality products.”
In the eyes of young French people, fraudsters cannot replace genuine products. Less than half of them think that replicas allow a touch of luxury without spending too much, compared to three quarters of young Britons.
We also learn that two out of five French people surveyed say they are uncomfortable with the idea of ​​buying imitations because of the loss caused by the brand or manufacturer, compared to only a quarter of other Europeans. In the same sense, a large number of French people (almost half) estimate that buying these replicas makes them feel guilty for not supporting the original brand, i.e. 11 points more than their European counterparts.
“France is home to some of the biggest luxury brands in the world, from Louis Vuitton have Cartier Pass by Hermes. Young French people are growing up aware of what luxury means and the identity of the main players in this sector. Many of these brands emphasize quality and craftsmanship, which means that young French consumers know that these products have something special,” the authors of the report point out.
Interestingly, the French seem to distinguish material goods from experiences that have less to do – at least in theory – with knowledge and experience and skill. In its report, YPulse reports “an increasing number of French consumers (who) are attracted to wanderlust tourism”, specifying that a third of them have already booked this type of travel for 2024. A way to discover equally spectacular destinations, but at a lower cost, and as a bonus, without the crowds associated with these ultra-popular vacation spots.
69% of respondents state that buying a “Lupana” allows them to “feel luxury without spending a lot” – YPulse
Keep in mind, too, that scams, contrary to what one might think, don’t just result in imitations of luxury products.
Many fast fashion brands, for example, have now been “duped” in favor of ultra-fast fashion brands, which especially shows that price is not the only reason for this craze for replicas, which sometimes borders on counterfeiting.