"Given the scale of the phenomenon, we bought a dupe of one of our perfumes. It's a rather extraordinary deception": how Chanel secures its raw materials

On TikTok, they are no longer called copies but "dupes" . While the term may seem less fraudulent, they are in fact reproductions ("duplicates" in English) that often have nothing to do with the original formulas. Widely popular with Gen Z seduced by their very low prices (some are displayed at less than 2 euros), these approximate caricatures are a hit on social networks - the #perfumedupe even reaches 500 million views on TikTok - and according to a recent study conducted for the Federation of Beauty Companies (Febea), 31% of French people have bought a cosmetic dupe during the year.

Yet, behind the image of a "good deal" found on the internet and in discount stores, these products disrupt the perceived value of perfume by damaging, among other things, the entire lengthy creative process. Especially since copyright does not protect scents, unlike the bottle and the name. Some brands...