Annual sales of illicit luxury goods amount to ₽280 bn. Of these, ₽84 bn are generated through online stores, with ₽25 bn from sales through social networks and online marketplaces. [1]

As per the Global Brand Counterfeiting Report 2018, 31% of the global losses suffered from the sales of counterfeit goods were inflicted by online sales of fake luxury items. BrandMonitor initiated and conducted a survey to estimate the size of the illicit market of luxury apparel, shoes and accessories in Russia. Onlinesales of counterfeit luxury goods amount to ₽84 bn. Of these, ₽25 bn are generated through sales on social networks and marketplaces.

Results of a BrandMonitor – initiated survey

[1] The BrandMonitor-initiated survey was conducted in June 2019. It involved 500 interviewees in 82 Russian cities with a population of more than 100,000 people. The sample represents Russian population aged 18 to 55 with experiences of buying fake luxury apparel and shoes in the last 12 months.

INITIATED SURVEY

Russians prefer to buy counterfeit luxury items in shopping malls and clothing bazaars; the total sales in these channels amount to ₽196 bn. Copies are purchased twice as often in shopping malls compared to the Internet. Most popular purchases include everyday items like T-shirts, sneakers, bags, and jeans. Consumers spend about ₽2,700 on a replica. This amount depends on many factors. Women are prepared to spend more money on fakes than men: ₽3,200 compared to ₽2,200. The amount of money spent varies by regions, with Moscow residents expending the most (₽4,100), while residents of cities with a population of less than 1 mn people spend the least (₽2,100).

The consumers admitted that, should their go-to store for counterfeits close down, they can easily find a new one. The responses point to the fact that Russians are convinced of the ubiquity of counterfeits and are familiar with their many sales channels. The overwhelming majority, 86% of interviewees, are satisfied with their latest purchase. Similarly, 82% look forward to buying more copies in the future. In their choice of a deluxe replica, consumers consider its price, functionality, and quality. Whether the item looks like the original concerns them much less. Interviewees found the logo’s conspicuousness and recognizability to be the least important. To sum up the results, it appears that consumers mainly focus on buying a specific item rather than a replica. Both authentic and fake clothing and footwear are selected by similar criteria.

In a separate section of the survey, we asked interviewees about an acceptable price for copies of certain goods. The anticipated price of inauthentic sneakers and jeans totaled ₽2,000, and ₽1,100 for fake sunglasses.

The strategy of sellers of counterfeit luxury goods is to openly admit the inauthenticity of their products, while artificially inflating consumers' expectations of their goods. It is for this purpose that they use the words 'replica,' 'copy,' 'AAA+ class copy,' and 'no difference from the original.' In reality, fakes of luxury brands are no different from any other counterfeit goods in terms of quality and net purchase cost. Replicas of luxury items are manufactured from inferior, and often hazardous, materials.

Y. Vopilov

Annual sales of counterfeit luxury goods total ₽280 bn

Designer:

Anna Ilyina

Illustrator:

Ilya Kutovoy

Writer:

Angelina Levina