Louis Vuitton outfit. Photo: IC

A fashion hit by which consumers purchase blind boxes containing a variety of accessories made from vintage bags from top luxury brand Louis Vuitton (LV) has become a new trend hyped by vintage shops across China, sparking wide criticism including "encouraging superficiality" and "trademark infringement." 

The "LV blind box" trend originated in vintage shops in cities such as Changsha, Central China's Hunan Province, and Chengdu in Southwest China's Sichuan Province. 

Designers of such shops have been taking the leather from vintage products such as handbags and turning it into new items such as hair pins, key chains, bracelets and card holders. 

These new "creative" products have one similarity: They all retain LV's iconic monogram print and are placed within LV's representative orange gift box. 

A hair pin with LV's iconic pattern Photo: Sina Weibo

While the items in the box can cost 100 yuan to beyond 500 yuan when sold in these stores, due to their "blind box" nature, consumers must spend 88 yuan per box for a chance to get an item they want. 

Combing these recreations with blind boxes, a popular trend among young Chinese, has made them hot commodities at vintage retail stores and on online platforms such as China's lifestyle-oriented platform Little Red Book, intriguing luxury product fans to chase after them. 

"As a student, I can't afford to buy LV, but I love the brand. So I would like to buy one of these boxes of course," Sarah Liang, a high school student, told the Global Times on Tuesday. 

"I'm selling handmade sanitary pad bags through WeChat. Not just LV, some other easily recognized brands too. Many of my clients are office women, they think such details made them exquisite," Lilith, one of these blind box sellers, told the Global Times.  

Besides the gambling nature of these blind boxes, netizens have also criticized that they may potentially be illegal since they may be infringing on LV's trademark rights. 

"It is very likely that this faces an infringement lawsuit. If we judge the issue based on the 'substantial similarity plus contact' concept, especially whether or not the newly created item has substantial similarities - copying or partially copying the original work… if the case is defined as 'severe,' there could be criminal repercussions," Gao Ling, a law expert, told the Global Times.  

Some other netizens have also expressed doubts about whether these new items are actually made from LV leather, as it would be hard for consumers to tell. 

"Looking at just the leather itself, in such small pieces it is hard to determine the authenticity, but the hardware metal bits, like zippers and buttons, are easier to see," Zhang Xiao, a luxury brand salesperson, said. 

"Buying such things is like feeding you expensive superficiality in a bowl of instant noodles. Because such brands are symbols of the rich and the price is acceptable… There will be problem if such businesses grow bigger, not just because it will disturb the market, but also because it makes consumers worship vanity even more," Li Xinrao, an anti-consumerism activist, told the Global Times.