Cartier. Faking exclusivity.
A Cartier Love bracelet costs 7,000 pounds. A fake from China costs 50, and in public nobody can tell the difference. When you make luxury accessible, you kill what makes it valuable.
THE GIST ON CARTIER: "Faking Exclusivity"
What did Cartier do?
It spent decades building exclusivity. The Love bracelet was an iconic status symbol. Then it made luxury accessible, with entry-level pieces aimed at younger buyers. Gen Z could finally afford Cartier, and sales exploded.
What was the catch?
The age-old paradox: when more people can afford the real thing, many more buy fakes. The Love bracelet is one of the most counterfeited pieces of jewellery in the world, and almost identical to the real thing. Even experts struggle.
Luxury only works as a status symbol when it's legible. It's hard to fake the weight and movement of a Rolex. But a Love bracelet is a gold band with screws. Simple to replicate.
What does that mean?
You can make luxury accessible, but you cannot democratise exclusivity. That's the whole point. Cartier made its most iconic piece so simple and accessible that it became the easiest to fake.
Cartier is growing itself out of relevance. The more successful it gets, the less its product matters. Can you grow and stay exclusive?
Does a fake devalue the real thing?
Your take. One tap, then see how everyone else voted.
Quick answers
How much does a Cartier Love bracelet cost?
7,000 pounds, according to Huw, against 50 pounds for a fake.
Why is it so easy to fake?
It's a gold band with screws, a simple design.
What is the paradox?
When more people can afford the real thing, many more buy fakes.
See you on the next one.
What should the next one be? Suggest a topic for Huw to explain
The conversation
Comments
Nothing here yet. Start the conversation: Huw reads every comment before it is published.
