Croota Underwear - a brief case study of the dilemma between genuine and fake products sold on the Internet
Author: Colin McCullough
My ecommerce website specialises in selling male designer underwear. It has existed on-line for five years but only in the past year has the problem of fake Chinese replicas branded under the same name become a real problem. To be more specific, I would ask you to look at the two images of what is supposed to be the same product. (A) is taken from a site which has a reputation for selling only the genuine article. (B) is taken from another (Asian) site - I will not name and shame - which reportedly sells the same (branded) article.
(A) (B)
Not much difference one could say from the point of view of the Internet client wishing to puchase a pair of Croota boxers. True - problem is Article A comes from my store and retails at over $23 dollars. Article B comes from a Chinese store and retails for just over $7 dollars. My objection, do not get me wrong, is not competition but UNFAIR competition which claims it is selling the genuine article for one third of the price. Knowing the wholesale price of the goods (just over $14 for me from the genuine Croota manufacturer), I know that the other product is a fake. There is no other answer.
So what can I do about it? In true terms precious little. Complaint to the Chinese Ministry, complaint to google or eBay as listing it as genuine - my experience in the latter cases is do not be expecting an answer to your email tomorrow morning. No one cares. I do believe, however, that certain commercial ethics should make large search engines and sites such as eBay responsibility for not taking any action to protect the producer and seller of the genuine article.
So what can I really do about it? Basically, I advise on my website on the presence and the disadvantages of buying the branded fake. Let them wash it five times and see the colours made, let them watch the sewed trimming loosen after two weeks. Then decide if your $7 dollar purchase is the right one as you through your precious Croota boxers in the trash.
About the Author
Colin McCullough has worked for some five years on search engine optimization, both onsite and off. His interests include internet marketing, technology supported learning and automated translation processes. He has consulted for a number of male designer underwear companies helping to promote their search engine visibility and ecommerce efforts,
