10 brands that fake most often
In times of crisis the most common goods are essential goods, and the number of imitations of anything is inevitably growing - from expensive bags to Swiss cheese. We have already talked about how the first fakes came into being, how artisans and large corporations struggled with them and how fakes changed society’s attitude to luxury. Now we have turned to the official “charts” of the most fake brands in the world, which can be considered an unspoken rating of their popularity. A similar report is published annually by the World Customs Organization and, as is customary, talks about statistics for the past year. Armed with them, we tell why millions of people are so eager to possess the things of these brands, even if there is no money for the originals.
Nike
Although for Nike, leadership in the list of the most fake brands may not be the most desirable compliment, it is worth noting that manufacturers of counterfeit goods consider this sports brand to be the most important - much more important is adidas, which is in fifth place in the list of fakes. Despite the huge amount of counterfeit, the original Nike are very popular in North America and Europe, and the company announced an increase in total revenue to $ 8 billion, that is, it increased by $ 1 billion compared with last year. One can only guess which of the Nike products is being faked the most, but eBay is teeming with instructions on how to distinguish real AirForce 1 from fake ones. What can I say - the manufacturers violating the law really have good taste.
Apple
By the number of cases, Apple is in second place in the list of the most fake brands for the second year in a row. If we analyze the search queries in Google, it turns out that the peak search for fake products of the brand was in July 2011, a couple of months after the release of the iPad 2 and at the peak of the iPhone 4 dominance in the smartphone market. The only product that overtook the fake iPhone in search engine popularity was the Beats by Dre headphones and they did it for almost two years. However, after Apple acquired Beats Electronics for $ 3 billion in May this year, the search for fake headphones declined, which may be due to both the declining popularity of Beats by Dre and the release of the new iPhone.
Rolex
The fake Rolex watches seem to be even more popular than the real ones, although the latter are still considered a necessary accessory to demonstrate the financial status of their owner. Although the company produces approximately one million hours each year, supplying each of them with an individual certificate issued by the Swiss Institute, the masters of the fake business in Southeast Asia sell about 40 million fake Rolex annually. Such a spread is explained by the price: real watches are sold in the price range from several thousand dollars to infinity, and fake - from 10 to 50 dollars per piece. As a result, Rolex suffers huge losses, approaching one billion dollars annually.
Samsung
Last year, by aggregate sales of Samsung smartphones, Apple and Nokia bypassed (which, by the way, were in second place), and, respectively, secretly provoked an increase in the production of counterfeit smartphones by the South Korean company. This year, Samsung sold 11 million of its new smartphone Galaxy S5 and, despite the large sales of this phone, lost 10 percent of the market due to growing competition from the Chinese company Huawei, Apple’s aggressive policies and, of course, counterfeit manufacturers. The matter is again only in price: the era of expensive smartphones is coming to an end, and most of the buyers are not ready to change one $ 700 smartphone to another same company every year. Counterfeit Samsung smartphone can be found on the market for 150-170 dollars.
adidas
The endless rivalry between adidas and Nike was won by Nike this year dry - in official sales (because of the World Cup, where 10 teams played in the Nike uniform), that in the sales of counterfeit, where adidas are inferior to four lines. However, unlike Nike, adidas cannot boast of an increase in sales, as they lose a lot of money because of fakes and, accordingly, close, and do not open outlets that are suspected of selling counterfeit goods. Due to the particular popularity of adidas Originals among celebrities, which serve as role models for many people, as well as because of weaker lawyers, sales of adidas are reduced every year. Take at least an English store, whose owner, using eBay and his premises, sold adidas counterfeit for 142 thousand pounds, which is 14.5 million rubles at the current rate.
Louis vuitton
The things of the Louis Vuitton brand are also considered an indicator of the status of its owner, and this is especially true of women seeking to have at least one accessory of a distinguished brand in their wardrobe. Of the entire list of seized counterfeit goods, almost 20% annually accounted for Louis Vuitton. Although the company was overlaid by lawyers, the status of the brand only increases the number of fakes produced, and due to the annual increase in the price of accessories sold, it does not allow this LV to compete with fakes. The top Louis Vuitton fakes are headed by brand bags that have learned to make them as similar to the original as possible, resulting in a myriad of guidelines on how to distinguish the present from the cheap.
Chanel
The French Chanel, although they are not at the top of the list of the most counterfeit goods, accurately bypass many brands in the number of counterfeit hits. They include world-famous wallets and bags (their replicas can sell for two thousand dollars), as well as, of course, perfume Chanel N ° 5. According to statistics, every third Chanel N ° 5 sold in the world is fake, and real perfume is sold every thirty seconds, bringing the company $ 100 million a year. Unfortunately, counterfeit goods are often sold in large shopping centers, since not all buyers know that the price of original perfumes starts from $ 74, and they buy fake ones for 15 to 30 dollars, which is also a lot at the current rate.
Cialis
Pharmaceutical products lead among all other counterfeit goods, ahead of electronics and cigarettes combined: in 2013 only the number of intercepted counterfeit drugs was half a billion. Worst of all, the Cialis impotence medication has become the most counterfeit medicine in the world, which in the US is issued in pharmacies only by prescription, and we are available for sale. The company itself, of course, is aware of the existing problem and even posted a warning on the site along with instructions on how to distinguish the original from the fake. Alas, despite the measures taken, the market for counterfeit drugs for the treatment of potency problems is rapidly gaining momentum in India, which produces most of the fake drugs. In addition, fake Cialis can aggravate existing problems, as it contains pesticides, lead and mercury. With the same caution, it is worth acquiring the famous Viagra - the popularity of these miracle pills with counterfeiters is only slightly inferior to the volume of fakes Cialis.
Gucci
Gucci bags, Gucci belts and Gucci sunglasses instantly betray the person who has come to success. Therefore, it will not be difficult to hang around with counterfeit accessories, since the popularity and status of the brand provokes replica manufacturers from Asia to instantly make a stand. Moreover, the company does not succeed in obtaining justice from the point of view of the law: Gucci and Tiffany recently lost a case in a US court trying to bar Chinese banks from keeping the money of the established fake manufacturers.