Well, Anyone making $100k+ can afford a pair of $1000 shoes every few month if they really want them. However, anyone who is making less than $500K a year will be foolish to buy them is a perfectly good replica is available for $50. Of course, if you are reach enough so that $1000K is like a cup of coffee for you, then there is no need to save that money.I disagree with you there. A child from China doesn’t not have the same skill set as a artisan who spent years of training. Certain designers have their own exclusive factories who produce their leathers. Material by itself is not the same. It’s like saying a child at $5/hour is the same as t a lawyer who is $600/hour. It’s hard to find replicas because it’s illegal.
It doesn’t change my point at all. If you can afford $1000 then you can afford it. You already have decent enough savings. But to go out and buy $50 replica of to save $950 it means you couldn’t afford the shoe to begin with. There’s no point in buying a replica. You have no appreciation for the brand itself or the design that when into it. That’s why I view it as posing as luxury when you really not.
If you want to save $950, you can go buy any pair of shoes, but to specifically find a replica of a designer brand you just looking for the image.
You being up a good point about morals. Replicas are dirt cheap, think why it is and who you supporting.
Another question why do you need to project an image of having $1000 shoes. My guess, the same as why layers have expensive suites why equally wealthy entrepreneurs have jeans and t-shirts: it is a uniform. If your profession has a required uniform and it is expected that more successful you are, the more expensive your uniform should be, you have no choice but to buy that uniform (or a replica of it). For lawyers it is suites, for SPs - shoes.
And, finally, everybody have the "catching up with Joneses" as a part of their utility function. Ans having what looks like $1000 shoes send a signal of success (even better, it prevent the fact of not having these shows to send a bad signal when society expects you to have them)





