Cheap bags and watches at what cost? The truth about Chinese fashion fakes

BIG READ: Keen to buy a cheap knock-off Rolex or Gucci bag? One Aussie tourist enters a "secret" room and is amazed at what he finds.

"DO you want to see our secret room?"

Jonathan Lea on the Great Wall of China.

For three days I'd walked aimlessly past the small luggage store in this Chinese tourist town, until by chance an eager salesgirl asked my German friend if he wanted a suitcase.

But it was her follow-up question - this invitation into the "secret room" - that lured us in.

I grabbed a third buddy, confident three men were enough to guard against any potential tourist trap, and we entered.

It opened like an Aladdin's cave; bright, enticing and overflowing with luxury goods.

The store was all of 16sq m but as we were whisked into what should have been a cramped storeroom, I stood amazed.

Are these the world's tackiest souvenirs?

Two spacious showrooms, connected by a short stairwell, were perfectly lit and shelved, resembling a high-end department store.

On the walls hung some 400 handbags, clutches, man bags, bum bags and work bags.

Louis Vuitton, Georgio Armani, Prada, Gucci, Hermes, you name it.

From the shopfront, this looked like just an ordinary luggage store. Picture: Jonathan Lea

Bargain bags - all sporting labels proving their "authenticity".

Designer wallets, purses and belts were kept in another draw located in the centre of the room.

My Canadian cohort tried one of the watches. It stopped working twice in 10 minutes.

A male attendant was summoned, peculiarly declaring "the watch is too new."

My haggling began. The price plummeted, from the "store price" to the "special price" of 900 Yuan ($155). I considered, comparing it with the cost of a real Cartier at $7000-$8000.

For 20 minutes the manager and I did away with English. We pumped numbers into a calculator arguing over the sale price.

Playing hardball, I feigned leaving.

"OK, OK, OK," she declared, settling on 500 Yuan ($86).

I knew I'd probably paid too much but was satisfied I'd out-haggled most foreigners.

Later that night, I returned to buy my sister a handbag.

That's when I started discovering the real secrets of this room.

The back room, full of class - apart from the roll of toilet paper. Picture: Jonathan Lea

Tourist and Ten Eyewitness News reporter Jonathan Lea on his trip to China.

As I perused the walls of fakes, the exhausted manager began confiding in me, in impressive English.

This was one of a chain of fake stores hidden across the country. All the goods were manufactured in a special warehouse filled with craftsmen and workers.

As the staff sorted through bags of "real fake" (an ironic oxymoron) watches on the floor around me, I took a peek at a 2.5-thick magazine left on the counter.

Each page featured pictures of time pieces from the world's top watch manufacturers. All could be bought, traded and sold.

I was told that corrupt police are in on the forgery and sale. Allegedly, officers phone the "big boss" days in advance of any raid. Twice a year they inspect the premises, finding only an empty room.

Other secret stores along the strip aren't so lucky. When raided, their goods are quickly seized.

Working alongside her younger sister, the inquisitive 22-year-old manager said although each pressure sale is a fierce battle, they don't receive commission.

Staggeringly, they're paid just once a year.

For 13 hours a day, every day, they slave. Workers are given just 20 days off over New Year to return to their families who live many days travel away.

Both had been effectively robbed of school. How they learned English astounded me.

Watches, bags, wallets, purses ... you name it, the "secret room" was stocked full. Picture: Jonathan Lea

A drawer stuffed with fakes inside the secret room. Picture: Jonathan Lea

The elder sister said she dreamed of leaving to start her own business, perhaps fall in love. She told me she didn't seek a rich man - but scoffed the idea of marrying a farmer.

They wrote down my English words on notepads as I described shop items: "Tacky, understated, classy." To them, adjectives that could assist with a sale were invaluable.

For 30 minutes, free of China's CCTV cameras, we sat in the hidden shop, talking of her country, communism and America. I explained why the West watched with envy and apprehension at China's growth.

Another young worker stood amazed as I played with my work iPhone. He stammered the name "Steve Jobs".

Stupidly, I spoilt the moment explaining - in my own broken English - his passing.

Eventually, I paid for my fake items and left, privately tipping the girl the difference in price we'd haggled over. Considering how doggedly I'd bartered, she was surprised.

I was happy to see the money go to her and not her boss. It wasn't enough to change her life but it made me feel better than the cheap watch I'd bought hours earlier.

Jonathan Lea is a reporter with Ten Eyewitness News.

Jonathan Lea gets up close with a cormorant - one of the major tourist attractions of Yangshou / Guilin region in southern China - during his China travels.