Examples of Counterfeit Products: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

Chances are that you have come across your fair share of counterfeit products online, in your travels abroad, or maybe even in your home country. As you may have noticed, the quality of fake products can vary quite dramatically. Some counterfeit products are made almost flawlessly, making it difficult to differentiate the fake product from the authentic one. Other fakes are made, shall we say, not so well — with almost laughable faults.

Below, we’ve highlighted some examples of the good, the bad, and the ugly of counterfeit products.

The Good

The unfortunate reality is that some counterfeiters are incredibly skillful in producing fake products — which means the fake products they choose are almost undetectable from the real deal. Alibaba founder Jack Ma recently went as far to say that, “The problem is that the fake products today — they make better quality, better prices than the real product.”

While we don’t quite agree with Ma — there are many reasons why fake products should be avoided at all costs (which we will explore in future blog posts) — he is correct in highlighting that fake products have become increasingly sophisticated.

For example, you wouldn’t blink twice before entering this Apple Store and buying an Apple product:

A convincing recreation of an Apple store which sells fake Apple products. (Image credit: BirdAbroad)

But believe it or not, it’s an entirely fake Apple store — complete with staff wearing Apple uniforms, branded advertisements, and of course, fake Apple products. Just look how many people have mistake this fake store for an official Apple store.

Fake iPads galore. (Image credit: BirdAbroad)

And it’s not just these stores that partake in the counterfeiting business — the number of fake Apple products on the market has exploded in recent years, with everything from power plugs to phones available to buy.

But be warned — fake Apple products may seem like a cheap alternative to the real thing, but you’ll likely be left disappointed. With fake electronics, you can reasonably expect the device to have missing components and poor performance, both of which can pose a risk to your safety.

Sadly, many people don’t even realise they are buying a fake in the first place — according to Statistica, fake tech accounts for 7% of global ICT trade, and nearly one in five mobile phones shipped internationally is fake. So remember, if something too good to be true, it probably is!

The Bad

Counterfeit products are certainly not all as well designed and manufactured as the Apple products in the above example. In fact, most counterfeit products worldwide not only use low-quality materials, they also have many perceivable flaws and mistakes.

Just look at these two pairs of shoes, the first an attempt at copying Converse’s All Stars, and the second, a pair of brown Adidas leather sneakers.

“Hey now, I’m a Ball Star.” (Image credit: All Funny)

At least it’s an anagram of adidas… (Image credit: All Funny)

They could both easily be mistaken for real ones if you weren’t looking closely at the logo. The next examples on the other hand…

The Ugly

On the opposite end of the spectrum of sophisticated counterfeiting efforts are the following attempts. For whatever reason, the counterfeiters who produced these products failed to make a convincing copy of originals — so much so that almost no one could fall for their poor craftsmanship.

The above bag is trying to copy Coach, but there are many giveaways it’s a fake. For starters, Coach is spelt ‘Coagh.’ Secondly, the aesthetic of the bag is completely different from Coach’s. Finally, the craftsmanship is subpar (just take a look at the handles!).

Another example of a terrible fake are these iPhone shoes. We’re not sure who the manufacturers were trying to fool — but we can’t imagine these flew off the shelves.

Is it a phone or a shoe? (Image credit: Reddit)

So there you have it, some examples of the good, the bad, and the ugly of counterfeit products.

Have you seen any examples of good, bad, or ugly counterfeit products? We’d love to read about them in the comments below!

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About simplyBrand

simplyBrand is an advanced ecosystem that draws on artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, and crowdsourcing to eliminate counterfeit products in digital commerce. To learn more, visit the simplyBrand website.

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