468 SeCtION 4 Consumers in Their Social and
Cultural Settings
Counterfeit luxury goods are a major head-
ache for companies that cater to high-end
customers.
Source: © Neil Setchfield/Alamy.
Marketing pitfall
Luxury goods often serve
as status symbols, but
the proliferation of inex-
pensive counterfeit prod-
ucts threatens to diminish
their value (“Hey buddy, wanna buy a ‘genuine’
Rolex for $20?”). Fakes are a major headache
for many manufacturers, especially in Asia;
Officials in China estimate that 15 to 20 percent
of the products made there are counterfeit.107
How do people who bought the real thing
react when they see imitations of their prized
handbags or watches parading by them on
the street? Researchers who interviewed
consumers who purchased luxury fashion
brands in India and Thailand identified three
coping strategies:
1. Flight—They stop using the brand be-
cause they don’t want to be misla-
beled as a lesser-status person who
buys fake brands.
2. reclamation—They go out of their way
to emphasize their long relationship
with the brand, but express concern
that its image will be tarnished.
3. abranding—They disguise their luxury
items in the belief that truly high-
status people do not need to display
expensive logos, whereas those who
do betray lower status.108
 
was also a silver tier. Although both groups were “gold,” those in the program that also
offered a lower level felt better about it.105
A major motivation to buy is not to enjoy these items but rather to let others know
that we can afford them. These products are status symbols. The popular bumper-sticker
slogan, “He who dies with the most toys, wins,” summarizes the desire to accumulate
these badges of achievement. Status-seeking is a significant source of motivation to pro-
cure appropriate products and services that we hope will let others know we’ve “made it.”
A study demonstrated how people turn to status symbols to prop up their self-concepts,
especially when they feel badly or uncertain about other aspects of their lives. When sub-
jects in auctions were made to feel that they had little power, they spent more to purchase
items to compensate for this deficit.106
As we discussed previously, the rise of a mass class market means that many luxury
products have gone down-market. Does this mean that Americans no longer yearn for
status symbols? Hardly. The market continues to roll out ever-pricier goods and services,
from $12,000 mother–baby diamond tennis bracelet sets to $600 jeans, $800 haircuts,
and $400 bottles of wine. Although it seems that almost everyone can flaunt a designer
handbag (or at least a counterfeit version with a convincing logo), our country’s wealthi-
est consumers employ 9,000 personal chefs, visit plastic surgeons, and send their children
to $400-an-hour math tutors. A sociologist explained, “Whether or not someone has a
flat-screen TV is going to tell you less than if you look at the services they use, where they
live and the control they have over other people’s labor, those who are serving them.”109
Of course, the particular products that count as status symbols vary across cultures
and locales:
●● Although to most Americans the now-defunct Hummer vehicle is a symbol of ex-
cess, Iraqis still regard the huge gas-guzzlers as an alluring symbol of power. An Iraqi
Hummer dealer observed, “In Iraq, people judge you by your car, and you’re not a man
without one.” People there use an Arabic phrase to explain the need to have the biggest
car: hasad thukuri, which roughly translates as “penis envy.”110