Trademarks are the most valuable commodities in the fashion industry. Fashion companies rely on their trademarks so consumers can identify a particular brand's products easily, which in turn has a bearing upon whether the consumer elects to purchase the product. Since copyright protection for fashion designs is limited, fashion companies must rely on their trademarks in order to help distinguish their products from those of their imitators.
Trademarks have the ability to stimulate consumer demand for products globally. This is particularly true given the advent of the Internet. Marks indicate that a particular product is associated with a certain reputation, and that, by buying another product with the same mark, consumers are purchasing item of the trademark owner's standard of quality. With the increased demand for certain trademarks, counterfeiters have realized the benefit of copying such IP. Counterfeit products can be created at a relatively low price and can be sold for great profits.
What is trademark counterfeiting?
Trademark counterfeiting is the act of manufacturing or distributing a product or service bearing a mark that is identical to or substantially indistinguishable from a registered trademark. Simply put, trademark counterfeiting is theft of someone's IP. People who copy legitimate products not only reproduce the trademark owner's original patterns and designs, but they also decrease the value of the original products in the marketplace by making exclusive products seem as though they are available at mass-market prices. This practice harms the trademark owner, who seeks to maintain the exclusivity of the brand in the marketplace, while at the same time it allows counterfeiters to capitalize off the established goodwill and reputation of the trademark owner.
