Sham glam for Africa?

Article By:Thamar Houliston
25th February 2009

The Chinese are infamous for their fetish for big names. When I was teaching English in Taiwan, I remember my boss saving the whole year to buy herself a Louis Vuitton 'original' handbag, despite the fact that the rest of her wardrobe was pretty average.

What's the allure of big brand names? Well, perhaps it's because in Asia the concept of 'face', or how others perceive you is fundamental to your place in society and closely related to status.
There's no doubt that this neverending struggle to acquire big brands by the general population, extends to other countries too.

Africa is another frontrunner in this trend, with many poor individuals often having the latest brand names, despite their income level.

So how does one explain the most recent trend in fashion — 'sham glam'? Fashion in a recession?
'Sham Glam' is basically 'fake' fashion, or rip-offs of the originals. Although previously shunned as unsophisticated, these fake products are now becoming accepted alternative brands in China.
These 'sham glam' goods have slightly altered names, treading the fine line between imitation and straight-out fake, and cost much much less than their above-board, well-known brand-name equivalents. They are not infringing on copyright, but still riding the wave created by the forerunning brands.

For example, Samsung goes to Samsing, Adidas goes to Odidoss or Avivas and Hike, Like or even Mike a substitute for Nike.

With the global recession, it's likely that even if they don't really make the status cut, they might well be the new 'brands' of choice.

So could the same happen in South Africa?

In a third-world country with a massive low-income population could the rise of 'ama-cheap-cheap' rip-offs become big in the fashion industry?

Robyn Cooke, style writer and fashion blogger, says: "For everyone that likes a bit of a bargain, it's hard to resist good fakes. If the item looks pretty much the same as the original — and let's be realistic, it will function pretty much the same — then why not get something fun and fabulous to add to your wardrobe at a fraction of the price?"

A matter of ethics?

"Unfortunately, it's also a matter of ethics. Just because you can get something that is essentially a stolen design, doesn't mean you should. But it is hard for the average cash-strapped consumer to make that distinction when the price difference is so vast," adds Robyn.

Is it true though that these 'original designs' are ethical themselves?

Renato Palmi of the ReDress Consultancy in South Africa notes that, "the perception that a 'Made in Italy' product represents skilled artisanship in an environment where ethics, corporate social responsibility is a fundamental ingredient of the manufacturers' ethos no longer exists within these luxury goliaths."

In fact, not all 'Made in Italy' labels are made in Italy. Many are "partly made in developing countries and final additions done in Italy."

So is sham glam perhaps a 'take back' by these developing countries, where products ultimately land up on shelves anyway, but with a price tag not many can afford? Or are they actually more harmful to the local economy?

Something to be concerned about?

Renato also says: "I think the possibility of 'sham glam' products entering the South African market is something that the creative industry in South Africa should be concerned about and begin to find strategies to counter the influx of these products, that will dilute South African design and erode into the sustainability of businesses linked to this industry sector."

"With consumers looking to stretch their rand as far as possible but still wanting to look trendy, they may begin to look for alternative ways to keep up with the latest trends. And what better way than wearing and using items that have similar names to the favourite brands but come with a more affordable price tag?"

"The emergence of sham glam products entering South Africa will create numerous problems for the local clothing industry. Currently the South African Revenue Services are trying to curb illegal apparel imports and the emergence of fake products flooding the SA market will overburden Sars."

"Local entrepreneurs will also see an opportunity to copy local fashion designers' designs and sell these goods within both the formal and informal economy.

"These unscrupulous business operations will exploit the delicate line between copyright legality and counterfeits by cleaver name changes and even subtle style changes. We may even see the worse case scenario where local apparel manufacturers for the sake of survival begin to produce these cheap imitations."

Robyn also says that many people won't be able to distinguish between the real thing and fakes.
"Those that know and love the original design will be able to recognise it (most times) as a rip-off, but the average person in the street won't."

And so concludes Renato: "The possible growth of these shameful products in South Africa flooding the local market will be due to the financial crises we are in and for the majority of consumers the concept of supporting local fashion design will be a distant thought when such alternatives are made available to them."

Changing mindsets?

"There seems to be a new consciousness that has entered our local minds," says Robyn. As the economy continues to suffer, getting something at a bargain price is increasingly a source of pride, even amongst the wealthy classes.

Where once consumer pride was all about flashing your designer goods as a mark of being able to afford it, now this pride is about being canny enough to grab a good bargain and loudly declare it."

"This consciousness serves to further open up a 'rip-off consumer culture', where getting something like the original but at a vastly reduced price, is in fact socially encouraged."
What do you think? Do you think it's completely unethical for these cheap alternatives to be on the market, or do you think that it's only fair capitalism and competition?

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