As Trump wages trade war against China, the Chinese weaponise TikTok users, tell Americans the truth about luxury brands they use
The US-China trade war has taken what could only be described as a bizarre but hilarious turn. China has unleashed its homegrown TikTokers to “educate” the public by casually exposing how Americans’ beloved Gucci and Dior bags are actually churned out in the same “dusty” Chinese factories that are now selling knockoffs for pennies compared to the original price.
While the US is flexing its tariffs, China seems to be flexing its “sewing machines”. It is not just bags—every luxury brand out there seems to have some connection with Chinese factories, and imposing high tariffs seems to be coming back to bite not only American but Western brands as a whole.
Wave of satirical comments via TikTok videos
Social media platforms, specifically TikTok, are awash with Chinese content creators revealing how luxury brands have long relied on Chinese Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) factories for producing their high-end products. This sudden wave of truth-telling is widely believed to be a sly—yet actually brilliant—counterpunch to United States President Trump’s decision to impose a 145% tariff on Chinese goods.
Notably, “exposé” is not the only nuke in Xi Jinping’s arsenal. The Chinese government has also retaliated with a 125% tariff while calling the US move an “unfair practice”. China did not hold any press conference or flex its military power but decided to weaponise TikTok influencers. As their cameras rolled, the billing machines at luxury brands are expected to dry sooner rather than later.
In one of the videos on social media, a Chinese man is seen showing off high-end handbags. He said with pride in his voice, “For more than the last 30 years, we have been the OEM factory for most luxury brands.” However, he added, “I am not proud because we were only making our wages… the profit margin for us was very low.”
He goes on to flex China’s so-called “superior” supply chain and craftsmanship, noting how Chinese factories have immediate access to all necessary components—leather, zippers, accessories, and what not. “Luxury brands tried to move OEM outside China. They failed. No quality, no craftsmanship.” The video ended with him cheekily asking buyers to purchase goods directly from him, or the factories in China.
Dior’s dirty laundry and Versace’s quiet hangers
One of the TikTokers dove into the specifics of Dior’s supply chain. According to her, Dior’s knitwear and cardigans hail from Beyond Garments in Hangzhou, which also supplies to Sandro, Maje, and even Versace—all luxury brands that charge their customers in lakhs for every single product.
In yet another clip, a woman lists cosmetics suppliers, claiming that Dior, Lancôme, and L’Oréal share the same manufacturing partner—Thai Ho Group. In short, what customers thought was haute couture could just be high-end dropshipping.
Another influencer on the platform exposed brands while announcing, “Luxury brands will hate me for this,” and named many more suppliers.
The world of ‘first copy’ has exploded
While some videos showed how China is the manufacturing hub for luxury brands, other videos showed how the exact same products are available for dirt-cheap prices. These products, often called “first copy”, are of superior quality, as China is known for mass-producing duplicate items of the original products—as they, well, manufacture the original product based on the design provided to them by their “Western” clients.
For the uninitiated, a “first copy” is a term widely used to describe replicas made using the same material, and often in the same factory, as the original product. Sometimes, they even pass as indistinguishable. China’s ‘first copy’ market has long been the worst-kept “open” secret in global commerce, but never has it been paraded on social media with such flair.
Notably, these are not the average fake bags or shoes that you can buy from Bangkok or even from the Shastri Market in Delhi per se. These are high-quality lookalikes that could probably walk into a Paris runway unnoticed. These “first copies”, thanks to the tariff war, are now being marketed as direct-to-customer offerings from the Chinese factories. Normally, these factories keep their mouths shut about the real deal with the luxury brands—but the trade war has poked the bear this time.
The known, the unknown, and the obviously made in China
It is a well-known but shushed fact in the fashion world that many luxury brands get their goods produced where labour is cheap—for example, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam, and other countries. China, however, is at the top of that list. What has changed is that China has flipped the game. It has not only exposed the brands but also used the same design and material to flood the market with good-quality “copies” from first, second, to infinite iterations.
China is not hiding it anymore. It seems that the dragon is not worried about the impact of such an exposé on its manufacturing industry. As it is said, the injured do not think rationally—the injured dragon might have just thrown its own foot on the axe. Beijing is definitely going to feel the heat, as the customers of the luxury brands will seek answers once the laughter stops. The tag of “Made in Italy” might still sit on their handbags, but the stitches have suddenly started whispering Mandarin.
In reality, it is a PR nightmare for both luxury brands and China. While luxury brands may lose customers and be forced to move their factories back to home countries, China is set to lose these “luxury brands” as clients.
The real trade war is not being fought with tariffs and embargos. It is all about zippers, fabric rolls, angry influencers, and confused customers. Who is going to benefit from all this mess? Only time will tell.
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