真贋を見抜くプロ急募　中国で成長する中古の高級品市場

【北京ＡＦＰ＝時事】世界最大の高級品──と、その模造品──の市場である中国では、高級ブランド品の真贋（しんがん）を見分けるスキルに熱い視線が注がれている。（写真は高級品の鑑定技術についてノートを取る受講者。中国・北京の学校「Ｅｘｔｒａｏｒｄｉｎａｒｙ　Ｌｕｘｕｒｉｅｓ　Ｂｕｓｉｎｅｓｓ　Ｓｃｈｏｏｌ」で）
　「高級品の鑑定士」は、本物と偽物を見分ける厳しい目を持つ。ハンドバッグやベルト、衣服などを選別する際には、怪しげなシリアル番号や質の悪い縫製、ロゴなどに手掛かりを求める。
　中国では高級ブランドの製品が数多く生産されている。市場調査を行う対外経済貿易大学の中国・嗜好（しこう）品研究中心によると、その多くは、約４兆元（約６７兆６０００億円）規模とされる国内市場向けだという。
　現在、高級ブランド品の中古市場も活況を呈している。ハンドバッグ一つに大金をつぎ込むのを嫌う人々が、割安な製品を求めているのだ。
　しかし、そこで人々を待ち受けるのは模造品の違法取引だ。
　多くの人は、本物と「ほぼ変わらない優れた模造品」にだまされる──。そう話すのは、模造品を見分けるためのスキルを教える学校「Ｅｘｔｒａｏｒｄｉｎａｒｙ　Ｌｕｘｕｒｉｅｓ　Ｂｕｓｉｎｅｓｓ　Ｓｃｈｏｏｌ」の創設者、チャン・チェン氏だ。
　チェン氏が教える７日間の講座では、模造品の見分け方、中古品の価値の見定め方、そして高級品の査定に必要なスキルを学ぶ。
　受講料は１万５８００元（約２６万７０００円）だが、大注目の中古高級品市場に参入するための足掛かりになると考えると、それは払う価値のある金額だとチェン氏は話す。
　コンサルタント会社「前瞻産業研究院」のデータによると、２０２０年の中国の中古高級品市場は、前年のほぼ２倍に相当する１７３億元（約２９２４億円）に達したという。

■取引のトリック
　「シャネルの黒いハンドバッグの裏地はピンク色」──高級品の決まり事について説明するチェン氏の言葉に、受講生らは聞き逃すまいと耳を傾ける。
　チェン氏は、ハンドバッグに特殊な紫外線を当てて、受講者らにＩＤカードを確認するよう促した。「二つの文字が見える。これがカギだ」と話し、このスキルは１０年ほど前に日本で学んだと説明した。
　お金に余裕のある受講者ばかりだが、経歴はさまざまだ。上海から来たというファッション誌の元編集者や、コロナ禍で新たなスタートを目指すバーテンダーなどがいる。
　コピー商品の製造に関わっていたという受講者も数人いる。彼らは持ち前のスキルを生かし、それを伸ばして、いかがわしい仕事から足を洗うことを目指しているのだ。

■コピー商品をブロック
　製品を追跡できるマイクロチップの導入で、高級品の鑑定はハイテク化しつつある。仏ＬＶＭＨモエヘネシー・ルイヴィトンにいたっては、ブロックチェーン技術の利用を明言している。
　ただしこれらのテクノロジーはまだ完成されてはおらず、これまでのアナログな手法が脅かされるとは考えていないとチェン氏は言う。「どんなテクノロジーも、破られる可能性はある」
　「高級品の査定市場は、常に存在し続けるだろう。ただ、その方法が変化していく必要はある」【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】

〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2021/06/16-13:59）

It's the world's biggest market for luxury goods -- and their counterfeits -- so an expert eye for telling a bona fide Chanel handbag from a bogus one is a skill set in hot demand across China.
Enter the luxury appraiser, an eagle-eyed diffrentiator of real from fake, trained to triage handbags, belts and garments for dodgy serial numbers, stitching and logos.
China's factories churn out huge quantities of luxury goods, much of which is destined for a domestic market worth about four trillion yuan ($620 billion), according to market researchers UIBE Luxury China.
Now the second-hand luxury market is also booming as those unwilling to part with thousands of dollars for a handbag seek out the prestige at a discount price.
But a vast shadow trade in counterfeits lies in wait for the bargain-hunters.
Many are fooled by good imitations with little difference from the originals, said Zhang Chen, founder of the Extraordinary Luxuries Business School, who tools his graduates with the gift of detecting fakes.
His seven-day course teaches students how to detect forgeries, value second-hand goods and learn the skills needed to appraise luxury products.
And while the fee is 15,800 yuan ($2,400), Zhang says it is a price worth paying as it provides a foothold in a second-hand luxury market that is only just taking off.
China's second-hand luxury market value reached 17.3 billion yuan in 2020, almost double the previous year, according to consultancy Forward Business Information.
Chinese people buy one third of the world's luxury goods, but the circulation rate of three percent is far below the 25-30 percent in Western countries, he said, referring to the percentage that is later resold.
- Tricks of the trade -
Zhan drills the rules of luxury into students who are hooked onto his every word.
The lining of a black Chanel handbag must be pink, he says.
Trainees check ID cards on handbags from the French luxury fashion chain under a special ultra-violet light.
Two letters will light up, and that's the secret, said Zhang, who learned his own skill appraising luxury goods a decade ago in Japan.
Knowing which letters in the Chanel logo use a rectangular rather than square font can detect a third of the fakes on the market, he added.
His class are all affluent but from a variety of backgrounds, including the former editor of a fashion magazine from Shanghai and a bartender looking for a fresh start after his business was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
I realised that second-hand luxury bags could be sold at a very good price, said 31-year-old stock market trader Xu Zhihao.
A Louis Vuitton Neverfull handbag bought two years ago can still be sold at 9,000 yuan on second-hand platforms, a 20 percent discount, while a small Chanel Gabrielle bag goes for about 60 to 70 percent of the counter price.
I think the logic behind the sales is very similar to the financial products I'm selling now.
But the condition of the bags can have a heavy impact on value.
Pay special attention to the scratches around the buckle, as a lot of people get manicures these days, Zhang warns, identifying grazes from long nails.
And seasonality is essential, with red -- the colour of good luck -- selling quickest over Chinese holidays.
His school has even attracted former counterfeiters as students, he added, many wanting to build on existing skills but shift to less disreputable work.
- Block the fakes -
In most cases it takes Zhang around 10 seconds to tell if a product is real, he says, holding up a genuine Hermes bag.
Some clients send pictures of watches, trainers and clothes for an online diagnosis.
Verifying luxury products is set to become more high-tech with fashion houses introducing chips to trace pedigree.
Louis Vuitton announced in 2019 that it will launch a blockchain platform called AURA to record its goods.
Microchips have been inserted in the sole of women's shoes made by Italian brand Salvatore Ferragamo, while Burberry has experimented with Radio Frequency Identification technology (RFiD) in its goods -- a technology that uses radio waves to identify a tagged object.
But with the tech still in its infancy, Zhang is unconcerned about the threat to his analogue line of work.
Any technology has the possibility of being cracked, Zhang told AFP.
The market for identifying luxury products will always exist, it's just that the methods will have to adapt.