Have you ever found yourself wanting that new Lip Kit from Kylie Cosmetics but did not want to pay 30 dollars plus shipping? Maybe you stumbled onto a wholesale website and found a similar knock-off version and bought it for a whopping five dollars instead. Sure, you are excited to have saved a few bucks, but what did those few dollars pay for?
While it can be exciting to save money on a popular product, instead of paying full price, the cost of a high-end product pays for more than just its brand name. The money pays for a clean production environment, non-harmful ingredients and safety assurance.
Buying a knock-off product, however, pays for none of that. There has been a significant amount of research that goes into the black market world to investigate how exactly these products can sell for so cheap. Some people do not even know that these products are counterfeit, and assume that it's the actual product, which is even scarier.
The black market is now digital, making the buying process even easier, but more dangerous, as the buyer may not have the option to ask questions about the product they are buying.
Refinery29, a fashion and beauty publication, went on a trip to the downtown Los Angeles area black market to do some investigating for themselves and what they found shocked them and shocked me as a reader.
They found many high-end beauty products from Kylie Cosmetics to Urban Decay sold for little to nothing. They bought some of the products and had them sent off to a lab to find out what exactly was in these beauty products.
Some FBI reports found by Refinery29 "found aluminum, human carcinogens, dangerous levels of bacteria and even horse urine in the products they have seized". The investigators from Refinery29 found even more deadly ingredients including, lead, arsenic and mercury, which has resulted in rashes and eye infections on those who use them.
So, those full-priced beauty products may be worth the money after all! Saving money is great, but it is even better to put your health first!