The politics of (knock-off) fashion
Just as you cross the Czech Republic's border, you can see them everywhere. Counterfeit goods: from "label" shoes and clothes, to fake watches, to pirated CDs, being sold mostly at open-air markets, especially in the border regions of the country. Despite frequent police crackdowns, the Czech Republic still has a bad reputation with foreign producers, accused of not doing enough to protect their intellectual property. A gaffe by the Prime Minister's wife Sarka, who was spotted showing off a fake Louis Vuitton handbag, has added fire to the flames.
The Prime Minister's wife should have known better, was the verdict of the Czech papers. It was so much the worse for the fact that her husband, Stanislav Gross, was until three months ago the country's Interior Minister. The fight against smuggling and counterfeiting was high on his agenda.
Sarka Grossova admitted she knew her handbag was not a real Vuitton. "I don't mind. I like the handbag and it is serving me well. Besides, it was a gift," Mrs Grossova told the leading tabloid Blesk.
We quote from the official statement Louis Vuitton Czech Republic has given to Radio Prague.
"Counterfeiting is daylight robbery of intellectual property rights. It is a criminal offence highly detrimental to consumers, companies and governments in terms of product quality, employment and taxes. Our policy against counterfeiting is a zero tolerance policy.
"...Thousands of raids are conducted each year, resulting in the seizure of counterfeits, raw materials and manufacturing tools and in the arrest of manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers sentenced to imprisonment, and to paying fines and damages."
The Czech Prime Minister's wife is not someone who could not afford a genuine Vuitton handbag, as the cheapest models are around 200 euros. A former waitress at the Parliament restaurant, Mrs Grossova is no dependent housewife - she runs her own successful marketing and art production businesses.
Nor is the Czech Trade Inspector's Office, another major player in combating the sale of counterfeit goods in the Czech Republic, impressed by the fact that the wife of a top official admits to using a fake brand product. In the first three quarters of this year, the office confiscated counterfeit brand products worth 74 million crowns (2.5 million euros).
