Topic for Feb. 20. ( Thur )

[Alex !]

New Trend : Dupe

TikTok is one of the biggest platforms for fashion trends, and has become a hub for hauls and reviews. The latest trend to take over on the short-form video platform is ‘Dupes’. The term, which is short for duplicates, is the Gen Z abbreviation for knock-off versions of more expensive items. The hashtag #dupe has now been viewed more than 2.7 billion views.

Interestingly, dupe culture is not an entirely new phenomenon. The nature of the fashion industry has always involved reinventing popular trends and themes from the past. In previous decades, fast-fashion brands would more often than not target high fashion companies, and use their designs to ‘inspire’ clothes in a more affordable collection.

Nowadays, however, when a particular item or brand goes viral, the aim of a dupe is to recreate the product in its most similar form for a fraction of the price. It is no longer a product of inspiration but a mirror image.

So why is the dupe trend so popular?

When thinking about the main age demographic on TikTok – Gen Z and millennials – it is understandable as to why the trend has taken flight. These groups are less likely to have disposable income to spend on high-end products, and are generally more trend-led when it comes to fashion and beauty.

Dupes encourage accessibility to those who may not have the means to purchase the original product, allowing everyone to have access to trending designs regardless of their budget. With the current cost of living crisis in the UK being an ever preval‎ent issue, dupes allow people to feel involved.  

There are, however, challenges that come with dupe culture. Firstly, fashion and beauty trends are ever changing, and therefore the production of dupes requires a quick turnaround. In order to meet such tight deadlines, fast fashion brands often don’t meet environmental and social standards. 

Secondly, there is the issue of intellectual property and who owns the design, and whilst high end brands do not tend to mind when they are ‘copied’, there are many cases of litigation in the mid market territory.

Overall, when it comes to dupe culture, there is clearly a battle of accessibility vs. accountability. It can be argued that it is elitist to assume people can afford designer clothes or always shop ethically, whereas others would argue that the sustainability concerns outweigh the argument of accessibility. 

Dupes, knockoffs and brand imitators are not new: the first wave of beauty YouTubers were highlighting cheaper products as far back as 2010. But in the past, buying imitation goods was mostly done with the aim of passing the item off as the real thing.

The difference now is that buying #dupe is no longer the same as duping or being duped. With the rapid rise of shareable short-form video platforms, counterfeit has gone cool, with generation Z openly finding and flaunting their dupes.

“The rise of dupe culture speaks to a generational shift in consumption of goods and media.”

"Brands don’t need to worry about their reputation being damaged because it’s all so much in the open. Instead of fighting dupes, high-end brands should use the dupe to light-heartedly engage with popular culture. They should engage with it directly – and authentically – to bring new people in and show a confidence in the power of their brand,” 

Brands are going to have to start playing with this a little bit more. If they do, they can attract new customers that might not have initially come to them without the attention raised by the dupe.

This means that the widely known presence of a dupe is effectively a consumer stamp of approval that companies should feel empowered to lean into – especially considering a wide majority of US adults view duping as a minor problem, if one at all.

It felt like a very fun way to step into a cultural conversation. Part of why we had total confidence doing that is because we really do know our products are the best; and if you try them, we felt folks would have that sensory ‘Aha’ moment.