TikTok blew up with thrifty shoppers unveling, unbagging and bragging about their fantastic find on Walmart’s website. A dupe of the famed Birkin bag was for sale and they couldn’t get enough.

Dubbed the “Wirkin” bought at “Walmes” it took the internet by storm. At first glance (a quick glance) it does resemble the hard-to-get handbag.

But it’s a dupe and for some, it was enough to have it and feel like they struck gold…or blue…or green or any of the other colors that were offered on the site….until…. the magic link mysteriously disappeared, leaving those who didn’t click fast enough feeling….duped.

I first saw the bag when my email blew up with articles about it. I honestly couldn’t believe it. Then I went to Walmart’s website and there it was. The “Wirkin” bag for under a $100. A far (very, very far) cry from the Hermes price tag starting at $10,000 for a basic Birkin.

All over social media, shoppers were showing off their fabulous find, But maybe too much. As quickly as it became viral, it was gone. Which begs the question…did Hermes get wind of this and issue a warning? Walmart’s website has the bags, but they’re from a third party. A company in China is the manufacturer, but uses Walmart’s website to sell them. If Hermes wanted to, could they legally go after the company and others like it, that also produce dupes of luxury handbags for sale on Walmart’s website?

According to Douglas Hand, a fashion attorney and a member of the business advisory committee of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), the short answer is: Yes.

Hand told WWD.com that:

“For an extremely valuable product like Birkin, which could be diluted and devalued through its overexposure, it would not be suprising for Hermes to take an aggressive approach.”

He added that Hermes could:

“…seek to prevent what is called “post sale confusion” which is the circumstance where, even if the purchasing consumer knows the product is not genuine, Hermes’ reputation could be harmed by those who see others carrying the bags and think that Hermes is making a shoddy product.”

If you know me, or if you’ve read my blog long enough, you know how I feel about fakes. There is such a fine line betweetn “dupe” and “counterfeit”. The bag, and others on the website, look a lot like the bags they are definitely pretending to be. So will Hermes and other luxury brands do anything? Nothing has happened yet, but it’s only the first day of the new year…

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