Everyone talks about who wins from dupe culture. Nobody talks about who loses.
On TikTok, dupe culture looks simple. You buy a £5 perfume that smells like a £300 one. You post. You get likes. You’re smart.
But the full picture is more complicated. And uglier.
There are three levels to this industry. And all three have problems.
The first level is classic counterfeits fake Louis Vuitton bags, counterfeit Nike trainers, Chanel perfumes in near-identical bottles. That’s not dupe culture. That’s illegal counterfeiting. The workers who produce them are often exploited, conditions are inhumane, and the money flows into criminal networks. It’s not a secret it’s documented.
The second level is “legal” dupes products that imitate the formula, aesthetic, or silhouette of a luxury product without copying the logo. The perfume “inspired by” Le Labo. The bag with exactly the same shape as Bottega Veneta. Legal? Yes. Ethical? It’s more complicated.
And the third level is the most insidious.
Big brands copying small designers. Not the other way around. Zara reproducing a independent designer’s dress exactly after it appeared on Instagram. H&M launching a collection that looks strikingly like the work of a creator from East Africa or Southeast Asia. No credit. No compensation. No consequences.
This happens constantly. And it doesn’t appear on TikTok as a scandal it appears as a “new trend” from your favourite brand.
Independent designers are the silent victims of this system.
They don’t have lawyers. They don’t have PR departments. They don’t have the budget to fight a global giant. When Zara copies their work, they can sue and sometimes win, but the process takes years and costs money they don’t have. Usually, they stay quiet. Or they post on Instagram that they’ve been copied and receive a few thousand likes of solidarity. That’s it.
Meanwhile, Zara sells. You buy. And you think you made a smart choice.
Dupe culture has given this cycle a moral justification.
“Luxury is manipulative anyway.” “Prices are artificial.” “I don’t support exploitation.” All true, partly. But the dupe doesn’t solve any of these problems. It moves money from one imperfect system to another, often worse one.
If you actually want to change something buy from independent designers. Pay the fair price for their work. Promote their work. Demand that big brands be transparent about their supply chains.
The dupe is comfortable. Change is uncomfortable.
Your choice.
