“Dupe culture” and other indicators of womenflation: this fall’s hot political trend

Politicians who have no clue what this means are in for a rude awakening.

Over the summer, something remarkable happened. 

Women, across every voting demographic, started migrating their voting intention away from the Liberal government. But that trend shouldn't come as a surprise, given that economic data from that period suggests that high interest rates and sustained high inflation - particularly in the cost of fuel and groceries - are nudging Canada into recession this fall. 

That said, few economists, political pundits, or pollsters are publicly examining the unique aspects of how women in Canada are experiencing the cost of living crisis and how those trends might be impacting the migration of female voting intention from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal party to the Conservatives, who have been focusing almost solely on highlighting the impacts of the cost of living crisis.

There's glaring evidence of this trend in every demographic of women. For example, it's well-known that Canadian women are significantly less well-pensioned than men. So today, female retirees on a fixed income will be hit harder by things like the rising cost of groceries - they have less income to cushion the blow.

But there are other less widely discussed (and potentially more politically devastating) indicators on this front that spell trouble for the political fortunes of Mr. Trudeau's Liberals. To illustrate, let's start with the fact that not all lipsticks are created equal.

Bear with me on this one.

First, allow me to present some necessary context for my non-lipstick-wearing readers. Some lipstick drenches your smackers in vibrant pigment that feels like liquid silk, stays where it needs to be for hours and comes in sleek packaging, a fashion accessory in its own right. Others are decidedly less so and frankly barely crack the serviceable mark. And predictably, the first type is usually significantly more expensive than the second. 

Enter the concept of beauty "dupes," a potent cultural phenomenon that could almost be an inflationary indicator for women in its own right. Short for duplicates, dupes of higher-priced similar items in both fashion and beauty have exploded on social media as influencers have hunted for them and promoted their finds. For example, a quick Google search for luxury brand Chanel lipstick dupes yields over four million results. 

"Dupe culture" has mushroomed as a North American social phenomenon in recent years, particularly during the pandemic when lockdown measures and supply chain issues disrupted the flow of many brand-name beauty and fashion products. But it really took off in Canada as inflation and interest rate hikes moved the purchase of many of those brand name products, like that tube of Chanel lipstick, by average Canadian income earners from occasional luxury splurges to being permanently out of reach. And today, with inflation still fluctuating, interest rates still at generationally high levels, and supply chain issues still pervasive, even dupes are becoming harder to afford and find. 

So what do entire lines of beauty products being pushed out of the affordability range, and even their knockoffs becoming unavailable or unaffordable mean for Canadian politics?

Well, it means a lot of pissed-off women. And that spells trouble for politicians like Mr. Trudeau, who has for nearly a decade assumed a hegemony on the votes of Canadian women and is now being increasingly viewed by those same women as responsible for years of policy that exacerbated the cost of living crisis. And these women are more platformed than ever - a video about the unavailability and unaffordability of dupe beauty products, for example, can get millions of viral views. It is easy to connect the dots on a straightforward political narrative in these videos: Justin Trudeau makes beauty and fashion products unaffordable.

But I know what some of you might be thinking. Lipstick is a luxury: it's not like milk or gas. If a woman can't afford it, they don't need it, right?

That is one hella lousy assumption, and any politician who thinks that the simmering female ire over the unaffordability of things like beauty products isn't that big of a deal is in for a rude awakening.

The fact that Canadian women are still significantly more likely than men to be the primary shopper for their households underscores this point. If it's a choice between buying her face cream or covering the cost of inflated food necessities, chicken breasts are in, and Olay is out. And inflation means more women are becoming increasingly aware of the impact of the so-called "pink tax", a phenomenon wherein the same product is marketed differently and priced higher than it is to men.

It's true that the line between need and want is often blurred in North American consumer culture. But in the case of beauty products, where that line is drawn is impacted by well-researched facts that women are still judged based on their appearance more than competency. Extend that principle and put yourself in the shoes of any woman working in the service industry, trying to get taken seriously at a meeting, or putting themselves on a dating app, and you'll quickly find out what it's like to be a woman who doesn't conform to traditional Western beauty standards. Hence why the cosmetics industry in North America generated a staggering $267 billion (USD) in 2021.

But there's another political reality to consider here, too. For some women, having a set of beauty or fashion products on hand that makes them feel good about themselves is a small pleasure in women's lives that are often filled with the stress of balancing child care, elder care, managing a household, a career, and relationships. To wit, across social media platforms, there is a growing hum of women becoming more convinced that politicians responsible for policies that have led to inflation are tacitly asking them to forgo these items - and they resent them for it. Because again, need or want aside, many women will sacrifice their e.l.f. Halo Glow Liquid Filter dupe of the Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter to cover the difference in the spike of her home heating and grocery bills. 

There are broader economic problems with this trend, too. Inflation pushing women toward cheaper dupes, often mass-manufactured abroad, impacts Canadian businesses seeking to compete in the space. Last year's story of a Canadian lingerie designer who had her products knocked off by dupe-fashion retailer Zara illustrated this negative aspect of dupe culture and Canada's lack of intellectual property production for clothing designers. 

The same could be said for wellness and beauty small businesses, many of which are owned and operated by women. Canadian hair salons, already struggling to recover from a sharp decline in revenue during COVID restrictions, anecdotally are seeing clients forgo lucrative professional colouring appointments to opt for more affordable do-it-yourself-at-home treatments. Many of those same salons have recently seen a drop in their retail sales of salon-grade hair products. The decline in revenue that the widely popular hair repair product Olaplex experienced last year could be an economic indicator in and of itself.

And dupe fashion, paired with inflation, has also pushed consumers into accepting the concept of disposable clothing. Instead of being able to afford a durable, high-quality piece, consumers are driven to buy more affordable knockoffs that don't wash well or hold up over time. This has obvious negative environmental impacts. For all of Canadian Environment Minister Stephen Guilbeault's bluster about reducing waste, he's probably never had to throw away a pair of what passes for affordable pantyhose these days - those that frequently catch a run on the first day of use.

So, even though these issues have had virtually no exposure in mainstream daily political discourse, it doesn't mean they exist. Such is the plight of many elements of sexism. But political actors who ignore their potential impact on the next election may find themselves in the same situation with many women as that expensive tube of lipstick - cast aside in favour of a more affordable product.

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