Nigerian Personal Shoppers, How Market?

Most of us woke up to the trending news of a Nigerian actress sacrificing burnt Givenchy offering to Amadioha. I schemed through blogs for details on the story and I still have not changed my mind; I remain on the fence with this. Why would you sell a knock off for up to $1000? Why would you know it's a knock off and still spend that much buying it? What is wrong with Nigerian fashionitas?

Once upon a time, I wore and sold knock offs to people (my bad). I would buy good quality asian bags from Dubai but customers always requested for "designer". I had to compromise because customers were rejecting the better quality asian products and this was negatively affecting my revenue. I wore knock off goods in my university days because I simply did not know better. Sellers would tell us that they where "1st grade" or some kind of jist like- the companies had factories in China which were producing for developing countries and emerging markets. lol!. Shey oro niyen? We all fell for it.

I know better now. If I'm in Nigeria, and say I want to buy a vintage chanel shoulder bag. The first thing I do is assess my budget. Then, I search for the type of chanel bag I want. Brand new or used? What model, what season? Most importantly, I know the right channels to find information relating to this. Chanel has a website, so do Givenchy and Prada. They also have functioning customer care numbers and polite sales advisors. And.. NO, you can't even find a last season chanel bag for less than 150,000 naira. I dare anyone with authentic merchandise to prove me wrong. I want to know why Nigerian fashionistas buy high end couture merchandise from social media. I have bought and I still buy from social media.. Only generic mid range high street brands. Where I am at the moment, I stand the risk of being humiliated for being in possession of a fake designer item of clothing. Abi una no know? dem been dey detain some peeps for some European Union countries as per knock off tins.

While some people unknowingly fall into these scams, others outrighly overlook red flags. Red flags like.. An evasive seller. Avoiding specific questions and tending to be vague. You should be clear and reach a definitive agreement on the return policy of the seller. Mind you, if a company was producing for the major designer, it would be expressly stated on the packaging. For example, Vera Wang for Victoria Beckham (made up). Don't be in so much hurry to be among the cool kids. Mid-range high street brands are still as good and can help you save money for more profitable investsments.

In conclusion, I must give respect to personal shoppers who are true to themselves and continue to carry on their affairs in good faith. But for those who sell knock off items at exorbitant prices, I want to know where they get these things from. Are they from those Chinese factories making goods for emerging markets? lol.