Recently, I was at a social engagement and found myself toasting with a newfound Russian acquaintance. Eventually, the subject of our newly opened offices in Bangkok came up. “Thailand,” she said with an arched brow and knowing smile, “shyopping is vyery goot there… Cyoach bag for almost nyothing.”
This is no secret to the worldly. Knock-offs of almost any product one can imagine are there to be had at a pittance by any measure, as Thailand—due to a combination of geographic, economic and political factors—is a major thoroughfare for counterfeit goods.
My new friend was unswayed by the intellectual property rights concerns the companies that develop, design and make the products that are then counterfeitted. There was some jousting of ideas. Like many consumers, she appreciated a bargain, and felt that branded products are often vastly overpriced in comparison with knock-offs of reasonably comparable quality.
But then I pointed out to her that the people who profit from the production and sale of counterfeit products are not just unconcerned with laws pertaining to intellectual property, they are often unconcerned with any laws—even those that we think of as fundamental to our humanity. Counterfeit goods are often made not just by children, but by impoverished people, including children, who are laboring under circumstances that can only be fairly described as slavery. I spare the details here, but the interested reader can consult the website for South East Asia Investigations into Social and Humanitarian Activities (http://www.sisha.org). Be forewarned: outrage awaits.
At this point, my new friend was softening to my position, but she rightly pointed out, “So vhat? Gyap clothing is nyot the syame?”
With that, she made both her point, and mine.
Brand name products from American and foreign companies from time to time have and no doubt will continue to be tainted by foreign labor practices that we find reprehensible. There will probably always be an element that seeks to profit by the vice of inhumane labor practices. But with a brand name comes accountability. When we as a society learn of a company’s employment of reprehensible practices and speak out against those practices, that company’s image is tarnished and they are held accountable. This is part of the importance of branding: a brand means accountability. U.S. companies serving U.S. consumers can be held to U.S. values regarding humane treatment abroad. Insisting on branded products and holding the companies that own those brands accountable for labor practices abroad is a means for reinforcing fundamental values.
There is no analogue with knock-off, illegitimate products. The people who make, sell, and profit from counterfeits operate in the shadows and are not accountable under any law. When we as consumers purchase a knock-off product at a reduced cost, the money we save is not just coming from the violation of intellectual property laws, it is also coming out of the violation of much more fundamental human values.
And this is one of the main reasons why we have an office in Bangkok.