Christmas ‘dupes’ a festive hit as cost of living fuels demand for cheaper luxury alternatives

Originally a Gen Z obsession, dupes have become a mainstream shopping trend amid strained household finances, and social media, particularly TikTok, is supercharging the trend. Dupes are products that claim to offer a similar experience to a high-end item without claiming to be that product; online recommendations include cheaper fragrances and other products.

"No matter what age you are, how much money you've got to spend, everyone wants to 'luxe it up' with a dupe," says Catherine Shuttleworth, a retail consultant and chief executive of Savvy Marketing. "The message is 'why not be smart like me saving cash but still looking good'."

Eric Mills of market research firm NielsenIQ says the trend cuts across age groups. "The buyers of these brands are often thought of as only younger consumers, but while Gen Z are key spenders, it's millennials who account for the greatest proportion of sales," he says.

US “dupe” retailer Quince, which sells products ranging from candles to cashmere sweaters, has just launched in the UK. Its website suggests the saving against more expensive brands for each product. Budget supermarket Aldi is lauded on TikTok for its Lacura brand, tipped to offer substitutes for luxury scents such as Baccarat Rouge and Flowerbomb for £7 a bottle.

Charlotte Tilbury has criticised dupes. The celebrity makeup artist told the BBC that “when you dupe, you dupe the consumer”, saying cheaper imitations do not perform the way her products do. “If I could do them for those prices I would,” she said. Tilbury brought a successful copyright case against Aldi in 2019 over a product’s design.

Claire Breheny, partner and head of trade marks at Mathys & Squire, warns that similar packaging does not guarantee similar quality, ingredients or performance, although she notes a cheaper alternative is not necessarily always inferior. She urges brand owners to protect their packaging and overall look.

Despite such concerns, the appeal of dupes shows no sign of waning. YPulse research found 44% of UK 13- to 39-year-olds had bought a dupe in the past year, and 53% said the quality of dupes made them less likely to purchase a real luxury item. A separate survey from NielsenIQ indicated 38% of UK consumers had switched to lower-priced brands in the past 12 months to manage shopping bills.

"These cut-price products are in focus right now as consumers look for cheaper alternatives in response to rising prices," Mills says.

With the continued adoption of AI tools, Mills says: "It's easy to imagine dupes gaining further traction, as consumers can simply ask a chatbot for a cheaper alternative to their favourite luxury scent."