DESIGNER DUPLICATES Knockoffs' appeal remains the price

Imitations of high-priced labels flourish and quality of counterfeits improves.
SCRIPPS HOWARD
Amanda Denton likes the look of high-end fashions: sparkling, silver Cartier jewelry, genuine leather Prada bags and gleaming Gucci belts. But authenticity costs a bundle and labels aren't that big a deal in her circle of friends. So the 28-year-old software developer will settle for an imitation.
In other words, this Zebulon gal is all about the knockoff.
"The quality is really good," Denton said about the deals she finds on the Internet. "The stuff is just real sturdy. It's not cheapy."
Gone are the days when you copped your designer duplicates on the down low. Now you can buy them on the up and up at flea markets and even a new kiosk at Triangle Town Center. It's a safe bet your Kate Spade replica won't rip if you squeeze in an extra pack of tissues. And if your friends find your Fendi to be fake -- big deal! Chances are their Ferragamo is a facsimile too.
Yes, ma'am: Yesterday's peddlers are today's business owners capitalizing on recession-weary shoppers eager to save a buck.
Designer-inspired products
Apparently, it all boils down to honesty. As long as the merchant makes it abundantly clear to the consumer his items aren't the real thing, and as long as they don't sport a trademark, symbol or company name, his biz is legit. Even if it's to the chagrin of those fancy labels and the department stores they set up shop in front of.
"From our perspective we sell 'designer-inspired products,'" said Brian Bell, spokesman for the Los Angeles-based Web site AnyKnockoff.com. "They are made to look like originals by designers that you know: Gucci, Fendi, Prada, Kate Spade. They go pretty far in looking like the real thing, but they don't have the logos."
No one can doubt knockoffs' shady beginning. In the early days, they were straight counterfeits. The goods were often flimsy, but shoppers didn't mind; $10 was a small price to pay for a little bit of glamour. And to high school students the labels -- real or not -- meant instant cool points.
In the mid-1990s, the cheapy chic items made their first appearances at flea markets and street vendors.
Telling consumers the bags were real Prada, Gucci or Kate Spade originals infringed on copyright laws. But selling bags that looked like the real thing and felt like the real thing but wasn't actually the real thing was OK.
These days an accessory hasn't really made it big until it's been knocked off.
Quality issue
Even though the Internet makes it easier to get cheaper versions, true fashionistas say there is no substitute for quality.
"It's a trend, and in this economy you can understand why," said David Wolfe, creative director of The Doneger Group, a New York trend-watching group. "What makes it questionable is the person that's paying full-price for the original is paying for design development and creativity. The people who are doing the knockoffs don't have to pay for the talent. From that point of view it's a bit unsavory and unfair."
The knockoff industry is working hard to reverse that unsavory reputation. Whether it's a Web site, a street vendor or a flea market hawker, most offer a money-back guarantee if shoppers are not happy with thei the items they have purchased.
Online sales
Two years ago California-based laid-off techies Joel Paris and Craig Crowe decided "inspired-by" jewelry, sunglasses and purses would be perfect inventory for an e-commerce business.
They started buying merchandise from the streets of Los Angeles and overseas and selling it on-line. They perused fashion magazines to make sure the knockoffs they chose to sell on www.anyknockoff.com were the ones in demand. He wouldn't share exact numbers, but Bell said the company's revenues have grown 10 percent every month since it started in June 2000. There are 8,200 subscribers to the monthly newsletter published by the techies Bell said.
"We want to sell good, quality merchandise at a price people can afford," Bell said. "Inventory is always changing and we want to be ready to serve the customer."
One day last week, Raleigh resident Caroline Stalls examined a dark blue Kate Spade knockoff. She didn't find anything that day, but the regular shopper is sure she'll find something to catch her eye.
"I have two fake Kate Spades," Stalls said, smiling. "It doesn't bother me at all; you are talking to one of the few non-label conscious people out there."
With this kind of sentiment, don't be surprised if you start seeing knockoffs of the knockoffs.