I admit: I bought fake shoes
Years ago, I was completely obsessed with the gorgeous trademarked Louboutin red soles. I mean they were splashed all over Instagram and every second post pictured a stunning shoe with the shiny red sole.
It was hard not to fall into the trap. The problem was that the cheapest Louboutin heel was like a $1000 (Approx R10 000). It was obviously way too expensive and besides, after shipping and customs, I'd probably have to end up selling more than a kidney.
But I was dangerously obsessed. I NEEDED them in my life (or so I thought). So instead, what did I do?
I 'invested' in fakes. And why am I using the word 'invested'? Because that shizz was also expensive. I spent between R1500 and R2000 for a FAKE pair of Loubis. Don't ask me why I did this because I'm still wondering. Ordinarily, I would have never bought a fake product. I mean, I'd rather get something affordable than a fake. But I was going through a shoe obsession and it was becoming an actual problem.
Anyway, before purchasing these fake shoes, I did my research. I so badly wanted to own the real deal but with a price tag so high, I quickly realised that that was not going to happen. Then, I started to research the fake shoes. There were countless people selling 'A-grade' replicas which seemed amazing. Most of these replicas came with a dust bag, the same box as the originals and some even took it a step further and came with an authenticity card (side note: Louboutins don't come with an authenticity card).
Oh, and everything was delivered to the post office. You'd think that spending so much on a FAKE shoe, you'd get home delivery but that wasn't the case.
The first time I received the first pair I ordered (yes, I should have stopped at this stage), I was freaking out because the shoes were stunning. But then I tried them on. They were more uncomfortable than walking on dagger like stilts (fine, I'm exaggerating) but they were pretty bad. A few minutes in, I noticed the fake diamante's coming off. Needless to say, I have never worn those shoes for more than twenty minutes (I've never worn them out of the house either).
The second time I purchased a pair of boots. The boots were actually more comfortable than the last shoe but the shape of the arch was such a mess. It looked ragged instead of smooth. However, it wasn't as stunning as the picture because it was obviously a fake. I have worn these shoes multiple times, simply because I own them and because I spent so much money on it. But I’ve never and I will never tell anyone they’re real. I always tell them they’re fake.
WHY ON EARTH DID I SPEND SO MUCH ON A FAKE SHOE?!?
The last time, I decided to buy two pairs at once (you'd think that I had learnt my lesson but clearly, I didn't. I blame it on the fact that I was young and VERY dumb.) These were probably the worst shoes I have ever tried on in all my life. The first pair was actually quite stunning. It had a tiny peep toe and it was higher than my shoe standards (because let’s get real, at this stage I had absolutely NO shoe standards since I had been purchasing fakes). But even though they were absolutely stunning, they were super duper uncomfortable. It felt worse than my above mentioned exaggerated claim. Seriously, standing in it for a few minutes was absolute torture. I can't imagine walking in them for more than a few minutes.
The other pair was an absolute disaster. The back of the shoe did not hug my ankle. Instead, it kind of leaned away from my ankle. Apart from that, it was far too large and when I wore it, it was so so so scratchy. After about ten minutes in those shoes, my feet would become red because of how scratchy it was. So. Not. Cute.
I did ask the retailer if I could exchange it but they said that they couldn't because it was a custom order.
After that, I stopped buying ANY fake products COMPLETELY.
No ways was I going to drop a few thousand rands on fake junk. I mean if I had just saved up all that money I wasted and added a little more, I could have actually bought the real deal.
No ways was I going to drop a few thousand rands on fake junk. I mean if I had just saved up all that money I wasted and added a little more, I could have actually bought the real deal.
So what's the point of this post? STAY AWAY FROM FAKE PRODUCTS AND REPLICAS. Rather buy a cheaper shoe that does not hold an elite name.
This experience actually taught me a very valuable lesson. I realised that buying fake products is the number one way to waste your money and I have NEVER EVER purchased a product from just anyone unless I know that it is real. If even one product sold is a fake, I steer clear from that particular company.
I will be writing a separate post on why not to purchase fake products.
Today, I honestly feel disgusted with myself. Not only did I waste my money, but I don't wear these shoes because I hate how uncomfortable they are and they're fake. No matter how classy I dress, I always know that my feet are wrapped in fake junk and that thought actually really sucks.
I've been told to sell them but I refuse to. Why? Because I honestly don't believe that anyone else should wear rubbish like that.
That being said, I am now completely against knock offs. I will try hard to NEVER EVER fall into this trap again.
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