The Mystery of the $2,000 Ikea Shopping Bag

These goods are the least expensive way to gain temporary entry to a particular consumer class—for example, Gucci belts cost $450, while one of the brand’s bags could easily set you back $3,500.

Given that everyone can now buy designer handbags and new cars, the rich have taken to using much more tacit signifiers of their social position.

 This paper, for instance, found three common “inner benefits” shoppers experience when buying counterfeit luxury goods: “First, being efficient by optimizing their resources; second, having fun by experiencing adventure, enjoyment, and risk; and third, fooling others expecting not to be caught.” But, the authors add, “most important, through ... See more