Counterfeiting of Cosmetics & Perfumes

COUNTERFEITING

OF

COSMETICS & PERFUMES

By

Charlotte D’SOUZA & Karunamayi PRASAD

Mr. OLORENSHAW

27 November 2014

Introduction

Differentiating authentic and counterfeit Cosmetics and perfumes

Health Hazards

Biggest Markets for Production of Counterfeit Products

Biggest Markets for Counterfeit Products

Organizations involved in the Fight against Counterfeit Products

Initiatives Undertaken by Brands to Fight Counterfeit Products

References

Introduction

Counterfeiting is an important and fast growing market in today’s economy and currently accounts for 7% of luxury sales per year, and growing. This practice affects two major bodies: companies as well as the government, in various ways.

It damages companies’ equity through brand dilution, and reduces its sales and financial growth. The black market through which counterfeit products are sold, is a market which doesn’t pay taxes, which the government would have acquired if sold through an official channel, or by the brand.

Whilst most counterfeiting harms these entities only materially and financially, this is not the case where it concerns products such as pharmaceuticals, alcoholic drinks, as well as cosmetics & perfumes. In these sectors it also harms, and can even go as far as being cancerous and fatal for the customers.

Since our MBA course is specialised in Fashion Jewellery and Cosmetics (and perfumes), in the following few pages we will study the health hazard of counterfeit cosmetics and perfume.

Differentiating authentic and counterfeit Cosmetics and perfumes

How to differentiate an original product from its counterfeit copy?

As we all know these products are very well imitated in all its aspects – colour, texture, packaging… While some of these criteria are easier to match than others there will always remain minor differences.

Visually the colour and packaging will look the same when you don’t see a fake product without its real...