Opinion – does ‘luxury’ fashion still exist?

Several websites have gone viral for offering  exact replicas of various luxury products at a significantly reduced price. 

Manufacturers, customers, and influencers alike consider these items to be of the same quality, with some websites even claiming to use the same production factories as luxury brands. 

Although social media platforms have tried to fight the promotion of various piracy websites, they haven’t yet been successful.

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All these factors, in addition to global economic uncertainty, have made the led customers of luxury fashion houses decide to stop their purchases.

This has resulted in luxury brand revenue falling by a massive 16 percent, according to the latest reports. 

The decline in luxury sales has been accelerated by digital-native brands offering high-quality products at lower prices, directly challenging traditional luxury brands. 

These new competitors have captured consumers who now value genuine product quality and sustainability over paying for brand names and artificial scarcity.

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Contributing to this decline in sales is the trend of conscious consumerism, with consumers choosing to support environmentally responsible brands and embracing second-hand options as part of their efforts to reduce their own carbon footprint and to give longer life spans to pre-loved clothes.

This shift in consumer behavior is clearly demonstrated by the success of second-hand clothing platforms like Depop, which reported revenue growth of up to 61 percent In their latest financial reports.

What do you think? Will the scarcity marketing gimmick be the end of the luxury brands, or will they be able to maintain their reputation, despite ignoring the complaints of their core customers?