Choco Pie in Korea, which is so popular that it is even offered at a Vietnamese memorial service, is also one of the popular products here. It was strange when I got closer to the store. The product name was spelled “Choco-Pie” in English, not “Choco-Pie.” It is a fake (fake) cookie that copies Choco Pie. The red box and design are similar to those of Choco Pie, which makes people mistake it for an official product at first glance. The price is 14,000 won (about 770 won) per box. Considering that the price of Choco Pie in general stores is 50,000 to 60,000 won (about 2,700 to 3,200 won), the price is one-fourth.
“Fake products imported from China and imitation confectionery products produced in the region are mixed,” an official familiar with the street told the Hankook Ilbo. “To avoid IP problems, stores deliberately change only one or two spelling of Korean company Orion to Oreon and Choco Pie to Choka Pie.”
The “fake snacks” that left this place are loaded into trucks and spread to rural areas and mountain villages in central and northern Vietnam. This means that those who are not familiar with the original product or who do not usually pay close attention may mistake it for authentic products and buy or eat it.
According to the Korea Intellectual Property Protection Agency, 12,692 cases of suspected Korean brand imitation by country from 2017 to 22 were in China, 2,039 cases in Thailand, 1,964 cases in Indonesia, and 1,730 cases in Vietnam. Although China still has the overwhelming number, Southeast Asia is fast chasing after it.
Korean products have become a major target because the popularity of Korean products has also increased due to the “K-culture boom” such as K-pop, dramas, and movies. “I usually buy cosmetics and food that I saw in Korean dramas,” said Tuan (22), a Vietnamese university student. “I usually buy them because I think that if the K-label is attached, it will basically be quality control.”
Fake unidentified products capitalize on Korea’s premium image. There are various ways to confuse consumers by copying the Korean company’s name or brand logo, making it almost similar to existing products, and changing the company’s name slightly.
In particular, counterfeit goods are expected to become more rampant as Southeast Asian product distribution and transaction channels shift from offline to online and e-commerce becomes active. According to the Korean Intellectual Property Office, Shopee, the local largest e-commerce platform called “Amazon of Southeast Asia,” estimated damage from Korean fake products in 2022 was around 401.1 billion won, but it surged more than 10 times to 4.4043 trillion won in the first seven months of last year. During the same period, the amount of damage through Rajada, another major platform in Southeast Asia, was estimated to be 509.5 billion won.
Fake Korean products are rampant in Southeast Asia, which leads to a problem of trust. In the event of quality problems, domestic companies may suffer from possible consumer disputes. The possibility that hygiene and safety issues of fake products will lead to a decline in the credibility of Korean products and national brand value cannot be ignored.
The Korean government is taking measures to prevent damage. Although it does not have the authority to directly crack down on local fake manufacturers and sellers, it is asking local authorities to monitor and crack down on the market, investigating cases of infringement of brand intellectual property rights of Korean companies operating overseas, providing legal advice, and making efforts to minimize damage.
Overseas missions such as the Korean Embassy in Vietnam are actively promoting Korean agricultural products in cooperation with local media, social networking services (SNS), and host country “influencer (a person with great influence online).” Companies are also attaching various identification marks such as anti-counterfeiting stickers, holograms, and QR codes to their products to prevent damage.
The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) is holding intellectual property seminars and counterfeit product identification events in Southeast Asia to inform Korean companies and local governments of the risks of counterfeit and counterfeit products. Starting this year, the work will be transferred to the Intellectual Property Protection Agency. Cho Eun-jin, deputy director of KOTRA Vietnam’s Hanoi Trade Center, stressed that thorough preparations are also needed, such as registering trademark rights there before Korean companies enter the Southeast Asian market.
SALLY LEE
ASIA JOURNAL
