Proceedings of 32nd International Business Research Conference
23 - 25 November, 2015, Rendezvous Hotel, Melbourne, Australia, ISBN: 978-1-922069-89-4
The Impact of Counterfeit Brands on Consumers Acceptance
of Original Brands
Sukhrob Raimov
This study is aimed at analyzing the effects of a huge influx of counterfeit brands into the
market of Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan, being by far the largest consumer market in all of
Central Asia, presents a lucrative opportunity for all manufacturers in the apparel and
clothing industry. Millions of products under fake brands or replicas are imported into the
country from China, while only a small amount of official stores are present. However it is
no secret that the major part of the customer base purchases counterfeits for several
reasons. This study is intended to last 3-4 months and will be completed using a
deductive approach and a survey of at least a 100 customers. Current findings are
preliminary, but they indicate that there is a shift the customers perception of brands and
their country of origin and overall originality. With the increasing ability to spend more
money on clothing the Uzbek market is on the verge of shifting towards becoming a more
developed economy compared to Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Thus it is
important to analyze the impact of counterfeit and replica brands on the potential
introduction of more original products in the market and how the customers will accept or
reject them based on different factors. This is a comparative study of the customer base
of Uzbekistan, and the research is highly significant for this rapidly developing consumer
market.
Track: Marketing Management
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Westminster International University, (MAIBM), Email: sukhrob.raimov80@gmail.com