Click Here to Enter Tragic FakesCounterfeiting is a GROWING problem, more and MORE products are being copied that pose significant risks to consumers. Americans are increasingly wearing these counterfeited items that cause them to make horrific fashion mistakes. Most counterfeits come from China and North Korea and the days of seemingly “harmless” knockoffs such as Rolex watches, Louis Vuitton purses and Nike sneakers are over.
*OVERSEAS WAKE-UP CALL*
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As more and more companies, in an effort to increase profits, move manufacturing to the cheaper labor markets of the third world, areas with weaker labor laws or environmental regulations, they give the means of production to foreign workers. These foreign workers have little or no loyalty to the original corporation; all they see is profits are being made by the global brand. So these workers figure that by removing the middle men (i.e. the parent corporation) and marketing directly to the consumer, they will gain a piece of the action. According to recent surveys, the value of counterfeit seizures coupled with piracy costs the U.S. economy between $200 billion to $250 billion per year. Counterfeiting and piracy also are directly responsible for the loss of MORE than 750,000 American jobs.
Foreign Workers will produce the “knockoffs” the same way they produce the authentic products, by using cheaper inferior materials. Another way these workers counterfeit products, especially seen in consumer electronics, by producing novel products incorporating desirable features not present in a brand's authentic product line, and then including prominent and fake brand names to profit from brand recognition. Certain consumer goods, especially the very expensive, have become frequent targets of this type of counterfeiting. All in all, the counterfeiters either attempt to deceive the consumer into thinking they are purchasing a legitimate item, or convince the consumer that they could deceive others with the imitation.One of the largest seizures was a raid carried out in New York City. The raid resulted in the seizure of an estimated $200 Million in counterfeit apparel, bearing the logos of brands such as The North Face, Polo, Lacoste, Rocawear, Seven for all Mankind and Fubu. Another large seizure was a joint operation in Arizona, Texas and California that seized seventy-seven containers of fake Nike Air Jordan shoes and a container of Abercrombie & Fitch clothing, valued at $69.5 Million. You would think that large-scale raids like this would deter the counterfeiters, but in fact, it doesn’t. According to authorities, federal crackdowns on counterfeit imports are actually driving an increase in domestic output of fake merchandise.
Overall, the spread of counterfeit goods, or "knockoffs", has become GLOBAL and has increased significantly. According to the study of Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau (CIB) of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), counterfeit goods make up 5 to 7% of World Trade.
*DON'T BE FAKE, KEEP IT REAL*
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U.S. Government takes Action
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U.S. Government takes Action
"Intellectual property is any innovation, commercial or artistic, or any unique name, symbol, logo or design used commercially. Piracy, counterfeiting and the theft of intellectual property assets pose a serious threat to all American businesses. Exporters face unfair competition abroad, non-exporters face counterfeit imports at home and all businesses face legal, health and safety risks from the threat of counterfeit goods entering their supply chains."
"Some U.S companies have found that foreign manufacturers have copied their products, packaging and business plans, even though they had never done business abroad. Foreign counterfeiters can easily steal your product pictures, brochures and logos from your website and register the material as their own inventions in their country, if you have not registered it there already. For this reason, some U.S. small companies seek trademark and patent protection in large potential markets well in advance of actually exporting to those markets."
*FASHION KNOWS NO LIMITS*
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"Did you know that Counterfeit Watches cause an estimated $1 Billion loss per year to the Watch Industry? According to estimates by the Swiss Customs Service, there are close to 40 million counterfeit watches put into circulation each year. Apparently, there has been an "open market" for these watches along Canal Street in NYC for over 20 years. These counterfeits are produced mainly in Asia, and are commonly retailed anywhere from $5 to $1,000. Nicknames for these counterfeits have been Foolex, Bolex, Frolex, Folex and Fauxlex."
