Replica Vs Authentic Kicks, What's your take on it?
 

I had this discussion with some friends the other day. I wanted to know what everyone's take on buying replicas vs authentics. I have a few reps that I purchased to wear only for walking as I love the way some shoes look and don't feel the need to spend the money to get authentics because I don't need the performance part of the shoes. I buy reps strictly for walking, I would never buy reps to play ball in. Money is tight for some people and not everyone has $200+ to spend on authentics. I used to be against reps back in the day but some reps are pretty much identical to authentics.

I don't do go around pretending that my reps are real, if/when I'm asked, I gladly tell that they're reps. I usually purchase AAA or 1:1 replicas. I'm a little bit older now and have appreciation for the shoe game but waiting in line for hours, resellers and paying for overpriced shoes just aren't worth it anymore for me. To each their own.

What's your opinion on reps?

when it comes to anything clothing/shoes I only pay attention to the fit, quality and appearance of the item (and cost of course). I couldn't care less about brand names

Nothing wrong with buying reps as long as you don't pass them off as the real thing or try and sell it as authentic, to each their own.

There are replica shoes now? What are they replicas of?

"You get what you pay for"

replicas of the real/authentic thing....

replica = fakes basically

I bought replica brand name clothing from a Chinese knockoff site.

You only have to do that once to learn your lesson.

Exactly, if they're replicas for personal use then it's all good. I have friends who are loaded that hate the fact that we have the "same" shoes except I paid $50 for mine and they paid $200+ :lol. I don't need to spend $200+ when I'm just using them for walking :thumbsup:

Haha you're joking right?

The rep game has really stepped it up these past few years. I know some hardcore collectors that buy authentics to ice and reps to just casually wear that used to buy 2 authentic pairs, saves them money to buy more shoes.

I mean which shoes are being copied?

Are they Nikes or Jordans etc? Or are they designer sneakers like MMM or Rick Owens?

There are tons of Nike/Jordan replicas and it's not very hard to find. Designer sneakers are a lot harder to find as replicas, I think mostly due to the fact that manufacturing is done not in china or everything is entirely hand made.

I honestly don't care if people wear replicas/fakes but it just annoys me when they try to pass it off as real. You're not really fooling anyone except yourself.

Anything that is 'popular' most likely has replicas

Wear whatever you want. Just don't pass them as real.

And none of that GM/unauthorized is still authentic bullshit.

fake's are pretty shitty IMO....i only see the poor people purchase them because they have no way else trying to buy $200+ sneakers every week plus the limited production run. vs $50 for replicas....it should be looked down upon like LG's buying fake LV purses.

Chinese counterfeits will never be 100% as the real thing...as much as they say 1:1 - super perfect - Grade AAA+ as marketing

they will feel like 2 dollar shoes because they are!....there most likely made in a slave factory paying workers 20 cents a day...so the mark-up on what you think you're getting a good deal on is probably making someone a millionaire.

again,you're not fooling anyone but yourself,your feet will be sore as shit like stepping on cardboard shoes....all these nikes/air jordans...they leave out the air cushion for plastic alone...they don't care,more $$$ for them cutting costs..long as the outside looks okay they don't care about the inside at all...again...anything in china can be created for fakes if their is money to be made.

i wouldn't recommend throwing your money away...no quality control,cheap low cost material...the shoes will fall apart sooner or later & sometimes dealing with these counterfeiters is sketchy....they don't send all the items you ordered as a scam and there's no way of getting your $$$ back because its already in their hands.

I have a rep pair of Kobe 8 BHM, everything but the kobe symbol in the back are identical, even the nice insole is in my reps. I compared it to my friends authentic kobe BHM, he was surprised that they were pretty much spot on. No rep will ever be a perfect match, that's why they're reps but I've seen some pretty much identical versions that would give the authentics a run for their money. I'm talking look wise of course.

You're free to think whatever you want about people buying reps and how they feel but like I said, some people, like myself who don't need performance, don't feel the need to spend the extra money, we're happy with the way the shoe looks. To each their own

PS The LG's with the fake purses try to pass them on as authentic :lol

I don't mind people with reps as long as they don't try to stunt in them and pass them off as authentic. With that being said, I don't mind some Feezys for some lawls.

if you use those Kobe 8 BHM as your daily's & the bottom heel didn't fall off yet....I'd be surprised.

my friend got reps i ordered for him...i got caught into the hype hoping it really would be 1:1 copy of retail pairs & just as comfortable,durable....nope....I say about 3 weeks after from walking around everyday downtown,The heel came right off from the shoe,no running or playing ball in them either....i looked at it....one thin line of yellow glue in the middle on the top of the toes to the heel part...i seen a kids art project with more glue then that :pokerface: once & never again....i learned my lesson but if people buy replicas because they need to put more food on the table or young kids doing chores for what little $$$ they can work for....i wouldn't really look down on replicas if that what helps them out....$200 is a stupid amount what it costs for nike to produce air jordan's at 20 dollars before the price hike.

How many purr of feezy's you got bro? :lol. Do they make fake goalie pads? You should try a pair :woot2:

Nah I've worn those kobe 8's 3 times. I have a rep pair of yeezy foams, I wore that pretty much all summer and they're still perfect. I love the look of the yeezy foam but not the price. I was looking for authentic ones for awhile but just gave up and got the reps haha. It sucks when you have a big shoe collection because you never know what to wear. I've neglected a lot of my kicks for the yeezy foams this summer.

simply wear what you could afford.

Don't got any, but I've been super tempted to get a pair lol. :heckno: not sure about goalie pads though lmao, would rip my knees apart

true,but on the topic of replica's i hope people are smart enough to know the difference from real & fake before they purchase off Craigslist for more then retail.

i hear a bunch of nightmare stories of people in USA buying Air Jordan 1's red/black & there so basic looking its hard for some people to know the difference without studying it first...these scam artists even scan their own store receipt on the computer & print it off for multi-sales, then have it in the box with the fake shoes with the Footlocker bag.
or scammer's buying retail taking the real shoes out,putting fakes in the box with the real receipt then selling it....air jordans out yesterday & shoes don't have the fresh brand new smell at all? :suspicious:

I hear you. Definitely have to do your homework if buying from a reseller on craigslist. Get as many pics and information and always inspect the crap out of the shoe before handing over the cash. Scammers will do whatever it takes to get that sale, gotta outsmart them.

sorry. JEANS ok... material is still jeans worthy.
Shirts... maybe the wash is off, or the logo of the POLO horse is off...
jewelry or hand bags... meh....

but shoes is where i draw the line..... because cheap ass glue, and cheap rubber will GUARANTEE you one day, out of no where, the soles of your shoes will give way when you're on a date. Because of my soles coming off back when i was like grade 9 playing soccer, (when i had no money to buy real shit), that was the last straw.

100% agreed. Not a fan of reps, and probably never will be. If you can't afford or don't want to spend that much on something, then look for alternatives instead of reps. For example... I've been eyeing a pair of Jordan 1 bred highs for the longest time but couldn't justify pulling the trigger on a pair of $450 shoes that I'll wear once a month or so... I ended up getting a pair of Jordan 1 mids in a similar colourway for the 1/4 of the price and am very happy with them.

I would love to rock a pair of yeezy 2 solars, but bruh I ain't payin $2500...