• Forbes CMO Marketing, Tuesday, February 16, 2010 8:28 AM

Renee Richardson Gosline writes that after more than two years of researching the high-end accessories counterfeiting game, she thinks the likes of Chanel, Gucci, Coach and Cartier are taking a myopic view of the situation. Where they see rip-off, she sees a certain symbiosis. "The designer brand makers may not understand it, but phony bags are potentially a potent sampling tool," writes Richardson Gosline.

Her research was conducted at purse parties where fellow upper-middle-class suburban women share feedback about fake merchandise. Most, priding themselves on their sense of priorities, initially said they had no intentions of spending the requisite funds to buy and sport the real deal. But, over time, their attitudes changed.

"I was able to observe and document changes in 112 party-goers' attitudes toward the real brands over time. Much to my surprise, and perhaps theirs, these consumers experienced increased attachment to the real brands," Richardson Gosline concludes.

Read the whole story at Forbes CMO Marketing »