With all the worries about the current recession, it’s perhaps unsurprising that the designer shoes industry is particularly feeling the pain. Inside reports on all the major fashion houses is indicating a major loss in revenue, as shoppers migrate from buying High Street lookalikes, or second hand designer clothing on eBay.

There are pitfalls with both of these methods though. It might be fine with some people, but there is something unsettling with owning second hand shoes. For one thing, you’re never quite sure who owned them before you, and whether you would want to be wearing something they previously wore. There may not be the same problems with the High Street or Mall lookalikes, but for the kind of money you get there, they are obviously not Prada shoes, no matter how much they try. They wouldn’t fool anyone from anything less than twenty yards away.

So what’s the alternative then? Well, some of the latest generation of replica shoes are looking pretty impressive. Made from the same materials as the originals, and using skilled leatherworkers and tailors, you can get a pair of replica Gucci shoes for about a fifth of the price of the original Gucci, but made to the same standard of quality. They’re comfortable, stylish, and good-looking. Even the experts would not be able to tell the difference between the originals and the replicas. Sales in replica shoes now outperform sales in the originals by a ratio of 100 to 1, which shoes that the consumer is smart enough where to shop in a recession, and how to spend their money.