these were the words I heard repeatedly in Chinatown, New York City. Now, I've never been a huge "purse girl" but I know many gals that are, and who doesn't love a cheap knock off--that looks like the real thing?
I thought the annoyance I felt was the worst of fake industry. However, I recently discovered that there's a dark story behind these fake purses that I feel our fashionable ladies need to know about.
An excerpt from the January, 2009 issue of Harper's Bazaar magazine:
Every time I give a talk on the luxury business today and I get to the subject of counterfeiting, the same thing happens. The room grows absolutely silent as I put forth the facts: It is estimated that up to 7 percent of our annual world trade--$600 billion worth--is counterfeited or pirated; that fakes are believed to be directly responsible for the loss of more than 750,000 American jobs; that everything from baby formula to medicine is counterfeited, with tragic results...
Counterfeiters work in human trafficking, child labor, and gang warfare...linked to truly sinister deeds as terrorism.
No one utters a word, not a sound, as I recall the raid I went on with Chinese police in a tenement in Guangzhou and what we discovered when we walked in: two dozed sad, tired, dirty children, ages 8 to 14, making fake Dunhill, Versace, and Hugo Boss handbags on old rusty sewing machines. It was like something out of Dickens, Oliver Twist, in the 21st century.
"I remember walking into an assembly plant in Thailand a couple of years ago and seeing six or seven little children, all under 10 years old, sitting on the floor assembling counterfeit leather handbags,' and investigator told me...'The ownders had broekn the children's legs and tied the lower leg to the thigh so the bones wouldn't mend. [They] did it because the children said they wanted to go outside and play."
Most consumers believe that buying fake goods is harmless, that it's a victimless crime. But it's not. It's not at all.
For more please check out http://fakesareneverinfashion.com/
I see a few themes here, I will point out two, but I'm sure you've seen more.
Greed: Isaiah 57:17 I was enraged by his sinful greed; I punished him, and hid my face in anger, yet he kept on in his willful ways.
Child abuse (this is how important they are to Jesus): Mark 10:14 When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.
I say...you want that designer bag? Thats ok. But if it's so important to you, don't support this industry. Pinch your pennies for awhile.
I thought the annoyance I felt was the worst of fake industry. However, I recently discovered that there's a dark story behind these fake purses that I feel our fashionable ladies need to know about.
An excerpt from the January, 2009 issue of Harper's Bazaar magazine:
Every time I give a talk on the luxury business today and I get to the subject of counterfeiting, the same thing happens. The room grows absolutely silent as I put forth the facts: It is estimated that up to 7 percent of our annual world trade--$600 billion worth--is counterfeited or pirated; that fakes are believed to be directly responsible for the loss of more than 750,000 American jobs; that everything from baby formula to medicine is counterfeited, with tragic results...
Counterfeiters work in human trafficking, child labor, and gang warfare...linked to truly sinister deeds as terrorism.
No one utters a word, not a sound, as I recall the raid I went on with Chinese police in a tenement in Guangzhou and what we discovered when we walked in: two dozed sad, tired, dirty children, ages 8 to 14, making fake Dunhill, Versace, and Hugo Boss handbags on old rusty sewing machines. It was like something out of Dickens, Oliver Twist, in the 21st century.
"I remember walking into an assembly plant in Thailand a couple of years ago and seeing six or seven little children, all under 10 years old, sitting on the floor assembling counterfeit leather handbags,' and investigator told me...'The ownders had broekn the children's legs and tied the lower leg to the thigh so the bones wouldn't mend. [They] did it because the children said they wanted to go outside and play."
Most consumers believe that buying fake goods is harmless, that it's a victimless crime. But it's not. It's not at all.
For more please check out http://fakesareneverinfashion.com/
I see a few themes here, I will point out two, but I'm sure you've seen more.
Greed: Isaiah 57:17 I was enraged by his sinful greed; I punished him, and hid my face in anger, yet he kept on in his willful ways.
Child abuse (this is how important they are to Jesus): Mark 10:14 When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.
I say...you want that designer bag? Thats ok. But if it's so important to you, don't support this industry. Pinch your pennies for awhile.
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