Gli effetti della contraffazione sui brand originali: un’analisi dell’effetto di sostituzione nel contesto degli accessori di moda

Abstract The impact of Non-Deceptive Counterfeiting on Legitimate Brands: a Reflection on the Substitution Effect in Fashion Accessories This study tries to provide preliminary new evidence on the research on counterfeiting focusing on the difference in consumers’ purchasing behaviors in markets with and without counterfeit products. Female subjects are asked to make their purchases from a choice set of five categories of purses including four categories of legitimate goods and one of counterfeit goods. Few weeks later, the same subjects are instructed to imagine a world without counterfeits and asked to choose again from the same set omitting the option of the fakes. By looking at the pattern of responses, we try to understand the interference of counterfeit products with genuine ones at different price levels and thus to comprehend the substitution effects among them.