MCM Handbags Top List of Fakes Seized in Korea

MCM handbags were the most popular designer product favored by Korea's counterfeiters and consumers last year. MCM is a German designer handbag brand bought by Korea's Sungjoo Group in 2005.

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The Korean Intellectual Property Office on Sunday said a police task force charged with protecting trademarks booked 139 dealers of fake items and confiscated 28,589 items worth about W14.5 billion (US$1=W1,124), last year.

MCM knockoffs topped the list with 4,680 pieces, followed by SanDisk (3,179), Chanel (2,863), Louis Vuitton (2,520), Gucci (1,779), and LeSportsac (1,181).

Handbags were most ubiquitous with 4,158 counterfeits found, while clothing came second with 2,751 and electronic appliances third (2,480). Accessories (1,443) and footwear (1,176) followed.

"Most MCM knockoffs were handbags", said Park No-ik of the KIPO. "We raided distribution centers of high-end knockoffs like Chanel and Louis Vuitton. But MCM topped the list of fakes discovered because we raided a factory that makes them".

The KIPO said that counterfeit goods have recently diversified from famous brand clothing and handbags to daily necessities, such as memory cards and electrical mats.

It also pledged to crack down on those involved in the rapidly increasing online trade in counterfeit goods.