One in three consumers buys counterfeit

One in three British consumers has purchased fake designer goods – although not always willingly. In a market worth 3.2 billion pounds (3.5 billion euros), Rolex and Balenciaga are among the biggest victims.

22 million buyers

British consumers spend an astonishing 3.2 billion pounds on counterfeit luxury clothing and accessories. Usually they do so in good faith, but are offered fake goods on online market places, auction sites or second hand platforms. Fake articles are so widespread that they are bought by one in three Britons (22 million), FashionUnited reports from an analysis by British pawnbrokers H&T. Counterfeit designer products are on the rise, especially in the growing online second hand market. Clothing and jewellery are the worst-hit product groups.

The report states that while many people buying counterfeit goods are simply misled, there is also a growing (deliberate) demand for it. Each month, Google processes 14,000 British searches for fake Rolex watches – making it the third most popular fake item in the United Kingdom. Balenciaga is number two with 15,300 searches per month, just behind the ‘market leader’ – Adidas’ Yeezy sneakers (15,400).

The rise in searches for counterfeit products is an important limitation on online luxury sales, as the producers are often not too happy with their products being sold there. Marketplaces or platforms like Amazon or eBay seem unable to take control of the issue, while the fake articles do damage their image and the relationship they have with important brands. Last July, Amazon launched a special division to counter counterfeit products – possibly aiming to boost its own luxury platform launch in September.