Is There Any Morality to Duping?
I asked four fashion people about their duping principles
Before ALAÏA released the mesh ballet flats, I had never considered duping a luxury product. I was also not a fan of ballet flats; earlier versions struck me as bland and conformist but I liked the rebellious spirit of the design and had found a gap in my closet for dressy daytime footwear. Although I had several outfits planned, I couldn’t bring myself to buy the shoes because of a nagging feeling that I was being duped by the price. Since the pandemic, it seems like every luxury fashion house has launched into the great scamming experiment, hiking prices to the point of alienating not-poor-but-not-wealthy consumers like me (making it nearly impossible to uphold my “Don’t bother if you can’t afford the real thing” principle).
When a mass-market retailer offered to send me a pair of replicas, a guilt-ridden Shelcy said yes. I didn’t feel good about duping a product I loved from a brand I respected, but I reasoned that if I was going to do it then the dupes might as well be from a somewhat ethically conscious company. The retailer in question kinda sorta fit the bill. On one hand it follows a quick-response, trend-drive business model, but on the other it has—in recent years—switched to using lower-impact materials, taken steps to reduce overseas manufacturing and publicly set sustainability goals. Ethically conscious, right?
Look, I’m not kidding anyone here and in retrospect, I should’ve bought the originals or waited long enough for them to show up on TheRealReal. As it turned out, the quality of the flats let me down but I still liked the look and was determined to get the most wear out of them. I feel good that I wore them almost every day this past fall and still have a few seasons’ worth of wear.
My first pair of ballet flats brought up an overwhelming moral quandary: Is there such a thing as an ethical dupe? Is it better to dupe from certain categories of brands? Intelligence firm Morning Consult reports that roughly 31% of adults in the U.S. have deliberately purchased a dupe of a premium luxury product, with the majority skewing younger, lower income and very online. What moral hoops do they jump through when making these purchases?
Fashion editor Harling Ross tries to steer clear of buying dupes altogether. “Dupes are usually created because of a trend, and trends tend to have a short shelf life in a wardrobe, she said. “They're like candy—they give you a quick rush but don’t really sustain you.” If she feels tempted by a dupe, she tries to pinpoint what she finds compelling about the original item and looks for a secondhand alternative. “Fashion is circular, and what's trendy now was probably trendy at another point in time, too.”
Much has been written about the rise of dupe culture and the societal conditions that have led to it, but I’d argue we can glean more interesting insights from examining people’s stance on dupes and the moral quandary they might experience when purchasing them. So I began my investigation with fashion editors Indya Brown, Krista Jones and Harling Ross, as well as fashion designer and Kai Collective founder Fisayo Longe.
Note: these Q&As were conducted last summer.
Indya Brown, fashion editor
Is it ever “acceptable” to buy a dupe?
I think it would be unreasonable to expect dupes to not be a “thing.” Luxury is much more than the good itself or even its quality. You’re paying for the marketing, the promotion, the proximity to an image. It makes sense that with the rising costs of luxury goods (especially when the increases seem arbitrary and not exactly linked to improved quality or working conditions), consumers are looking for lower-priced alternatives. Where I think it's unacceptable is when it mimics or rips off a small/independent brand or designer. They’re usually already struggling and sometimes we as consumers don’t realize the time, pain and energy it takes to create something entirely original. I like to respect that.
Sometimes I buy dupes to test out a specific item to see if investing in the real thing makes sense for me. It's so easy to fall victim to super trendy designer items that may seem IT at the moment but lose their charm after a few months. Trying it out via a dupe to me can be useful within this framework.
What’s an example of a good dupe you’ve purchased?
I’d say the Bottega Teardrop earrings. It wasn’t like it had incredible quality metal, but it wins points for me because if you put the Amazon version and the original Bottega Veneta ones side by side, you wouldn’t be able to tell which is which. I was seriously contemplating buying the “real” Bottega pair, but I realized it's not a style I consistently reach for to justify the cost.
Is there an ethical dupe hierarchy in your mind?
The impact of social media and its influence on the trend cycle has meant that we’re seeing trends progress at warp speed. Ideas are everywhere, shared on our feeds and proliferated constantly, and so I’ve seen so many luxury or mid contemporary labels dupe their peers. With that, it can be possible to get dupes at a great quality. Amazon is obviously the quickest and most obvious resource for this, but I’ve found it’s way more trial and error to actually find a good one.
Is there a way out of the proliferation of dupes?
I would say dupe culture is an inevitable byproduct of luxury and how we interact with it. We’re trained to want so many things and acquire them quickly, so as long as those behaviors continue to play out, dupes will be here to stay.
Krista Jones, e-commerce director
Is it ever “acceptable” to buy a dupe?
There’s a fine line between fakes and dupes. To me, a dupe is shopping a trend and being inspired by one popular item. A fake is when you’re trying to pass it off as the designer version. When you’re trying to fake it, that’s just not for me. There are people like me out there who can spot a fake a mile away, and that’s where it crosses the line. BUT I totally support shopping dupes in an aspirational trend way. The line is superfine and isn’t always black and white. There are situations where it’s okay with handbags and shoes, and times where it’s not. It can be situational, depending on the trend, the brand, the product, even the materials used.
Is there an ethical dupe hierarchy in your mind?
A great example is with the popular Miu Miu colorful raffia bag I’ve been seeing everywhere this season. Would I spend $2,300 on a raffia bag? No. Did Miu Miu create this design? I wouldn’t say this is an original design that should be associated with a designer brand. While I don’t know the origin of a colorful raffia bag, I do think there are so many iterations out there more worthy of a purchase.
That said, there is a hierarchy behind it. Would I buy the Amazon version? Absolutely not. But there are great options from other brands like Ancient Greek Sandals and A.L.C. I feel better buying a so-called “dupe” from a DTC brand for a few reasons. I trust these are better quality and I like not contributing to disposable fast fashion. Plus, these are both brands I like in general, and I’d happily support them to buy into this trend. It’s also a good way to feel like I'm participating in a trend without overspending or opting for a Miu Miu fake.
What’s an example of a good dupe you’ve purchased?
A lot of people are buying Amazon fakes of the popular The Row jelly flip flops this season. I didn’t want to participate in the Amazon fake scene, so instead I opted for the Ancient Greek Sandal pair. Did The Row invent jelly sandals? No. Is Ancient Greek known for being good quality? Yes. I can confirm this is a good way to shop a trend dupe. In fact, I bet the AG is just as good quality when it comes from an artisan-made perspective.
Is there a way out of the proliferation of dupes?
Sadly, I think the more we let influencers, media outlets, and social media accounts sell us on dupe culture, I think it will just get worse. It all comes down to the obsession we have with fitting into the luxury world right now and how badly everyone wants to be a part of that. Quiet luxury was almost a way out, but now even that is being duped…
Fisayo Longe, fashion designer and founder of Kai Collective
As a consumer, have you ever bought a dupe? Why or why not?
Yes, when I was about 15 years old, I bought a fake Marc Jacobs padlock bag. Remember when that was the IT bag? But as I’ve come into my own and now know myself and what matters to me, I haven’t bought a dupe. I just appreciate the real thing—I appreciate the artistry that goes into creating something beautiful and it is more important to me to value that rather than just to wear a trending item. I’m gonna look good in whatever I like and wear, I don’t need to wear an item if I cannot afford it.
Is it ever “acceptable” to buy a dupe?
To each their own. Life is dynamic and my opinions are fluid so I try to avoid making strong moral statements. When it comes to my own wardrobe, I prefer the real thing. It stings when my work is duped though. It definitely affects us negatively but Kai is more than just clothing and our core customer recognizes that.
Is there an ethical dupe hierarchy in your mind?
I think it’s really sad when small independent brands are duped even before they get to benefit from their work. Huge corporations should not be eating off people struggling to make a name for themselves. But I’m sure that nobody enjoys seeing their work stolen so it’s a slippery slope. I can only speak for myself and my own wardrobe.
Has becoming a designer changed your perception of dupes? How do you feel about them now?
I feel more strongly about protecting art and artists since becoming a designer.
In the next post, I will be sharing my theory on the ethical dupe hierarchy for paid subscribers. It will include a brief history of dupes, the reasons so many brands tend to release lookalike products, and my dupe morality pyramid. It’s gonna be a fun one!
Until next time,
Shelcy