Polo Shirts Should Only Be the Real Thing

Saturday 17th of March 2012 04:09:45 PM

Polo Shirts Should Only Be the Real Thing

Polo shirts, t-shirts, purses, boots, jeans and more are all the types of items that are being counterfeited. If you think counterfeiting only applies to money, you don’t understand the size of the knock-off market. Knock-offs are cheap imitation of the real items that are sold as originals. Sometimes the copies are so good you cannot tell they are fakes. This is big business too costing legitimate businesses billions in lost revenue around the world. There have even been cases where counterfeit products have put legitimate brands out of business with price undercutting.

Many people have no idea they are buying counterfeit goods. That’s just one reason why it’s so important to buy everything, including polo shirts and t-shirts, from a reliable vendor that knows where the clothing was made and verifies authenticity of the branding.

The vast majority of counterfeit clothing comes from China. The market for cheaper knock-offs continues to grow because the recession has left many families struggling to make ends meet. But now a new trend is emerging. At one time it was only expensive brands that were copied, but now the counterfeiters are copying lesser known brands. For example, there are copies of Ed Hardy sweatshirts showing up. The reason for this new counterfeit strategy is simple – it keeps the counterfeiter under the radar. Lesser known brands are less likely to aggressively pursue counterfeiters. To trick buyers, the counterfeits are even being priced closer to the prices of the authentic products.

Companies producing name brand fashions and accessories can afford legal teams that monitor the marketplace for fakes. Gucci and Vuitton have lawyers who go after counterfeiters full-time. Less well-known brands don’t have that luxury. The lessons for consumers are to be careful what you buy and to buy from a reliable vendor only so you know your tees are for real. There’s another lesson too. If it sounds too good to be true then it probably is a fake.

©Image by Adrian Gtz, www.sxc.hu/