The real McCartney

Sarah McCartney’s book ‘The Fake Factor’ is launched at the B Never Too Busy to be Beautiful shop in Carnaby Street on 22 November at 6pm. Along with the Lush shop next door, they’ll be staying open so that guests can do a spot of peaceful Christmas shopping at the same time. If you’re interested in coming along get in touch with Sarah at sarah@littlemax.co.uk.

26 members can get their hands on a copy of ‘The Fake Factor’ for just £9 including free postage inside the UK. Just send a cheque for £9 per copy, made out to ‘Cyan Communications Limited’ to: Cyan Communications, 119 Wardour Street, London W1F 0UW. Please include your contact details and where you’d like the book(s) delivered. Alternatively, you can contact Linette at 020 7565 6120 or email 26@cyanbooks.com



Here’s what Sarah has to say about her book...

“I’ve written ‘The Fake Factor’ for people who make, design and sell branded goods but mostly for the rest of us who buy them. It’s also for everyone who’s ever bought or sold a counterfeit – knowingly or not. But how can we tell if what we’ve bought is genuine, grey imports, surplus stock or just plain rip-off?

“An immense 7% of world trade is reckoned to be in counterfeit goods; it’s a huge problem for governments worldwide, particularly with ‘safety critical fakes’, inferior products disguised as branded goods which threaten people’s lives and health.

“Organised crime gangs are moving out of the risky world of drug trafficking into counterfeiting handbags because the profits are good and the penalties are lower. Interpol believe that counterfeit goods are funding terrorism. It’s a much more significant trade than most of us imagine.

“Looking at the Western world of consumer choice, what fascinates me about the counterfeit market is why someone will pay up to ten times more for a T-shirt with a brand name on it than a plain one of the same quality – even if the branded shirt is fake.

“I set out to investigate the rise in luxury branded goods and the even faster rise of their profitable counterfeit copies. Can manufacturers defend themselves against damage to their brands and loss of sales to their illegal competitors? Do customers really care whether they are getting the real thing, or where the money is going, as long as they are getting a bargain?

“Whether you’re interested professionally or personally in the counterfeit market, I hope you’ll find ‘The Fake Factor’ a good read. You probably won’t agree with all my conclusions, but it may make you think twice as you pass a market stall selling ‘branded’ goods.”

posted by jim @ 10:48 AM