The issue of combating the online sale of counterfeit products, especially fashion items and luxury accessories, has been a massive thorn of big brands for many years. Billions of dollars have been lost due to lost revenue, and the damage to some brands has been irreparable. Authentic items are drowned in a sea of counterfeit goods. So how do you combat this phenomenon and reduce the number of counterfeits being sold online? As long as supply and demand persist, there will be no simple and definitive solution. What to do? If we can prevent the sale of a single counterfeit item, that is already less money in the pocket of the counterfeiter, which will not be reinjected into the parallel circuit. And if we can prevent dozens or hundreds of counterfeit items from being sold, do the math! In this regard, action is deterrence. Indeed, the fight against online counterfeiting may discourage some sellers.
Monitoring your brands in the digital environment and removing counterfeits will help you achieve your goals: reduce your loss of revenue and eliminate the infringer’s source of income.
Data from Statista and the Global Trade in Counterfeit Reports from the OECD and EUIPO mentioned that in 2020 alone, more than half of counterfeit goods seized were luxury items, with 435 million $283 million worth of watches and jewelry seized and $283 million seized. Leather goods and luxury goods such as watches, jewelry, handbags, and wallets accounted for more than 50% of the value of goods seized, accounting for only 30% of all seizures. The majority of counterfeit goods seized by customs come from China, where $660 million of goods originated in 2020. Clothing accounted for $157 million in seizures and shoes $63 million.
The total counterfeit market is worth more than Ireland’s GDP, according to data from the OECD and EUIPO’s Global Trade in Fakes report. According to OECD data, international trade in counterfeit goods was around $449 billion in 2019, comparable to Ireland’s economy generating approximately $431 billion. The report also states that pirated goods accounted for 2.5% of global trade and around 6% of imports into the European Union in 2019.
This data only shows the quantity and value of counterfeit goods seized. We do not know the number of counterfeit goods sold. The submerged part of the iceberg could be 10 to 100 times larger.
Trusting a long-established trademark protection company would be the most efficient and cost-effective solution in the war against counterfeiting. Investing in a solid strategy to reduce the phenomenon would help reduce revenue losses and also help repair the damage done to a brand.
