1. Brand name manufacturers must compete with counterfeit manufacturers for consumer business. For example a legitimate pair of Nike tennis shoes is about fifty dollars, while counterfeit Nikes are much cheaper. This causes customers to choose the more inexpensive counterfeit copies rather than legitimate brands. Thus, this causes lower sales and can cause manufacturers and companies to struggle against such cheap competition.
2. Large department stores such as Macy’s that are beloved for their products and popularity also suffer greatly from counterfeit practices. Macy’s sells a plethora of different items from clothes to perfume to bedding. Chinese fake products that appear to be Macy’s brands that are sold on Ebay or on street corners or in small shops leech the loyal consumer base and thousands of dollars from Macy’s. Macy’s can also lose status as a trusted department store as counterfeit merchandise with the Macy’s name is harmful or low quality. Consumers are quick to blame the supposed makers of the merchandise not realizing it may be counterfeit.
3. There are no winners in the counterfeit game. The criminals get caught; the market is harmed by an influx of goods that are not up to standard; and the workers that have to make the counterfeit merchandise are treated like slaves making little money. The criminal investigators must allocate manpower, training and funds to continually battle against counterfeit activities. In the big picture everyone involved loses.
