Very expensive luxury" Whereas a retail shopper knows that a very expensive luxury item can't be the
real thing if it is selling for a ridiculously low price, the more modestly priced items are harder to
spot. For example, a $295 Kooba bag might be available from an Internet seller for $190. That price is
close enough to make a consumer think it might be the legitimate item -- but it is probably a fake,
because the price is too deeply discounted. | | |
Christian Louboutin is just one example of how luxury brands are being forced to react to counterfeiters.
The maker of high-end shoes and handbags has "gone to war" on the Internet, listing those sites that sell
knock-offs of its $600-and-up shoes in hopes that public shaming will stop some of the bleeding.
Other luxury brands are striking back, too. Versace recently won $20 million in damages in a case
involving fake goods.
But the knock-off artists aren't going away. Instead, they're just lowering their sights. The New York
Times reports that now, counterfeit brands are on the rise for such items as $295 Kooba bags and $140 Ugg
boots instead of $2800 Louis Vuitton handbags.
Counterfeiters are turning to the lower-priced merchandise, says The Times, because they "are easy to
sell on the Internet, can be priced higher than obvious fakes, and avoid the aggressive programs by the
big luxury brands to protect their labels."
One of the advantages of selling such goods is that the illicit merchants can "price the counterfeits
close to retail prices." Whereas a retail shopper knows that a very expensive luxury item can't be the
real thing if it is selling for a ridiculously low price, the more modestly priced items are harder to
spot. For example, a $295 Kooba bag might be available from an Internet seller for $190. That price is
close enough to make a consumer think it might be the legitimate item -- but it is probably a fake,
because the price is too deeply discounted.
It gets even tougher for a manufacturer when illicit websites go so far as to make their sites look like
they're real. Leah Evert-Burks, director of brand protection for Deckers, the company that own the Ugg
Australia brand, tells The New York Times, "Counterfeit websites go up pretty easily, and counterfeiters
will copy our stock photos, the text of our web site, so it will look and feel like" the legitimate site.
Ugg Australia is now engaged in a full enforcement program, according to The Times. In 2009, in fact,
customs agents confiscated 60,000 pairs of fake Ugg boots, and that same year, the company went after
2500 websites selling fradulent products, as well as some 170,000 listings on sites such as eBay and
Craigslist.
Unfortunately for the real brand names, this only goes to prove -- if you can't sell the real thing, you
can always fake it.Christian Louboutin is just one example of how luxury brands are being forced to react to counterfeiters.
The maker of high-end shoes and handbags has "gone to war" on the Internet, listing those sites that sell
knock-offs of its $600-and-up shoes in hopes that public shaming will stop some of the bleeding.
Other luxury brands are striking back, too. Versace recently won $20 million in damages in a case
involving fake goods.
But the knock-off artists aren't going away. Instead, they're just lowering their sights. The New York
Times reports that now, counterfeit brands are on the rise for such items as $295 Kooba bags and $140 Ugg
boots instead of $2800 Louis Vuitton handbags.
Counterfeiters are turning to the lower-priced merchandise, says The Times, because they "are easy to
sell on the Internet, can be priced higher than obvious fakes, and avoid the aggressive programs by the
big luxury brands to protect their labels."
One of the advantages of selling such goods is that the illicit merchants can "price the counterfeits
close to retail prices." Whereas a retail shopper knows that a very expensive luxury item can't be the
real thing if it is selling for a ridiculously low price, the more modestly priced items are harder to
spot. For example, a $295 Kooba bag might be available from an Internet seller for $190. That price is
close enough to make a consumer think it might be the legitimate item -- but it is probably a fake,
because the price is too deeply discounted.
It gets even tougher for a manufacturer when illicit websites go so far as to make their sites look like
they're real. Leah Evert-Burks, director of brand protection for Deckers, the company that own the Ugg
ugg boots
Australia brand, tells The New York Times, "Counterfeit websites go up pretty easily, and counterfeiters
will copy our stock photos, the text of our web site, so it will look and feel like" the legitimate site.
Ugg Australia is now engaged in a full enforcement program, according to The Times. In 2009, in fact,
customs agents confiscated 60,000 pairs of fake Ugg boots, and that same year, the company went after
2500 websites selling fradulent products, as well as some 170,000 listings on sites such as eBay and
Craigslist.
Unfortunately for the real brand names, this only goes to prove -- if you can't sell the real thing, you
can always fake it.
Contact Author
Disclaimer: Article submitters are solely responsible for the content of their articles. ArtiLib can't be held liable for the contents of the articles. Report Abuse
| Browse By Category |
