Consumer Response Towards Counterfeit Goods

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Consumer Response Towards Counterfeit Goods ADM 3321 Section M Consumer Behaviour Professor Michael Mulvey University of Ottawa, Telfer School of Management April 1, 2015 Executive Summary “A counterfeit is a knock off. A cat’s tail swiping a knickknack placed perilously close to the edge of a shelf is also a knock off” (Kintz, n.d.). So how can a consumer tell the difference between a knock off and the real thing? Well, for starters, they have to be cautious, conscious, and consuming. Anyone can sell a counterfeit product, but not everyone will buy one. If a consumer is aware of the fake goods that exist in the market and understands what can be done to avoid them, they are being cautious. If a consumer realizes that the goods they purchase are either real or fake, then they are being conscious. Finally, if a consumer avidly goes shopping, purchases the same type of good regularly, or is a fanatic of something, then they are consuming, and that is what keeps some people away from counterfeit goods. In essence, counterfeit goods are imitations of goods that are already available in the market, but are being sold illegally or deceivingly as the genuine products, as if made by the original manufacturer. They are sold at a fraction of the cost of the original goods, which is why so many people turn to counterfeiting as their means of getting the items that they usually could not afford or are not available to them. This report gives an overview of the characteristics of consumers and products, as well as the correlation that exists between the two when it comes to the decision-making process of purchasing a counterfeit good, as well as the many factors that may influence and affect consumers in this dilemma. In order to understand what exactly they are faced with, consumers must take a step back and ask themselves a few questions: Do I really

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