^^You make some good points, however you are way off about replicas (the good ones you're speaking of) being produced alongside the originals.
Rolex, for instance, makes almost every component of their watches in house. The same can be said for Panerai. Those better replicas usually have commonplace lower tier swiss movements (which are still pretty nice) but of the cookie cutter variety. The exteriors and cases are almost always made in chinese factories. The Chinese have really upped their production quality in the last decade.
In the end, its up to the individual and a personal choice. I like your assessment of getting more value for your money while still getting all the social proof, thats a good approach and mentality to have towards economics.
But to me, this particular case, it feels like stuffing your pants with a sock to make your package bigger. Or making up a bunch of lay reports in the plus notch thread to get forum members to rep you. Maybe girls will think you have a big cock, maybe forum members will take you more seriously and you didn't have to put in the work to approach, get rejected, self improve etc. But as long as I myself know the truth, it wouldn't work for me.
As a designer I also value intellectual property and creative rights, so there is a personal factor to my sentiments as well.
Rolex, for instance, makes almost every component of their watches in house. The same can be said for Panerai. Those better replicas usually have commonplace lower tier swiss movements (which are still pretty nice) but of the cookie cutter variety. The exteriors and cases are almost always made in chinese factories. The Chinese have really upped their production quality in the last decade.
In the end, its up to the individual and a personal choice. I like your assessment of getting more value for your money while still getting all the social proof, thats a good approach and mentality to have towards economics.
But to me, this particular case, it feels like stuffing your pants with a sock to make your package bigger. Or making up a bunch of lay reports in the plus notch thread to get forum members to rep you. Maybe girls will think you have a big cock, maybe forum members will take you more seriously and you didn't have to put in the work to approach, get rejected, self improve etc. But as long as I myself know the truth, it wouldn't work for me.
As a designer I also value intellectual property and creative rights, so there is a personal factor to my sentiments as well.