Chapter 588: Every profession has its own specialization

For a long time, Chinese people have not attached importance to intellectual property rights. For many big Western brands, China is simply a "hell-level" game difficulty.

It's not a big deal that a throat lozenge used the image of an "alien" in its own advertising for years without permission. Adidas's advertisements were even shown at NBA games, and Jordan and Nike's advertisements lasted for several years and lost numerous lawsuits before finally winning. Brands like MUJI and New Balance also failed in China and couldn't even use their names... There are too many examples like this.

In reality, Xiao Peng can only say that brands like MUJI and New Balance deserved it. They made the same mistake as Feiyue: their trademarks were registered and operated before they even entered the Chinese market. Without proof of export sales, they naturally lost the case. However, Jordan's loss is truly undeniable. Using someone else's name and silhouette in advertising and then refusing to acknowledge it's Michael Jordan is a bit ridiculous.

Some brands have indeed encountered trademark squatting, but whether it is "malicious squatting" or "effective use of the rules" is a matter of opinion.

It all comes down to the same old saying: the butt determines the head.

Regardless, China won't be rid of the label of "copycat nation" anytime soon, as the mainstream media still holds the sway of the Europeans and Americans. Just like how India is often called a "rape nation," the UK actually has far more rape cases than India. But as long as the media guides the conversation, attention will be focused on India, while the UK remains the world-renowned "country of gentlemen."

The fact is, a love of knockoffs isn't exclusive to the Chinese; most people enjoy getting a bargain. Just like how pirated movie and novel websites are now more popular than legitimate ones, they don't consider that the works they watch are the product of someone else's hard work. Many people today have peculiar consumer values, drinking milk tea for a few dozen yuan a day but reluctantly buying memberships for video streaming or reading websites.

People like this are actually still considered good. There are still many people who read pirated books and act like "freeloaders" and give low scores to other people's works every day and act like trolls.

Such people can no longer be described with the word "bad character". One can only sigh that not everyone on this earth is brought up by their parents.

To be more precise, foreigners prefer knockoffs. 99% of foreigners who travel to China choose to bring knockoffs back home. They are more pragmatic. They are the world's largest market for knockoffs, not China. But they label the Chinese as a "copycat country." What can you do about it?

China also wants to reverse this situation, so it has attached great importance to intellectual property rights in the past two years. As a result, there have been incidents such as "Adi Wang" changing its trademark, "Jordan" losing the lawsuit, and "Land Rover" winning the lawsuit against "Landwind". Now, after the trade agreement with Europe, intellectual property rights will only be given more attention. This is the mainstream development trend of the country in the future. Zhao Shanhe discovered this and considered transformation.

"Xiao Peng, to be honest, I'm now worth hundreds of millions. Of course, I can't compare with you. I'm talking about RMB. But in China, this money is enough for me to spend a lifetime. I spend 10,000 a day, which is more than 3 million a year. I can live a life of luxury and debauchery. In fact, I have thought so, but seeing that you have so much money and still travel around the world every day, I feel that I should do something. What can I do as a shoe maker? So I also want to be like those predecessors in China and turn the copycat shoes of that time into a big brand." Zhao Shanhe said.

Xiao Peng picked up his glass, thought for a moment, and said, "It's difficult. No, it's too difficult!"

Almost all of the major domestic sports shoe manufacturers started out as counterfeiters. Each of them has gone through untold hardships to get to where they are today, just like those who went to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures. However, those who can persist until the afternoon are basically those who say "Yesterday you ignored me, today I will make you out of my league". Not to mention those who use big-name stars to advertise, let's talk about the "Tubie NO.1" that has been criticized for its highly counterfeit trademark and name. Although it sells very well in the second-tier market, its main market is actually not in China but in Africa and the Middle East.

Zhao Shanhe didn't deny it: "That's true, but it's easier than deep-sea salvage, right?"

Xiao Peng didn't know what to say after hearing this. "Salvaging is actually pretty simple, isn't it? I don't have to worry about design, promotion, sales, production, hype, endorsements..."

Xiao Peng thought for a moment and said, "Shanhe, I'm a little confused about why you're looking for me. After all, if you get to know me a little, you'll know that I have no experience in the real economy. I don't even care about the management and development of my current deep-sea salvage company. I only care about money. What if you're looking for me to promote your shoes? I've already said goodbye to live streaming and will keep a low profile from now on, so I'm afraid it's a bit of a mistake for you to ask me."

Zhao Shanhe smiled and said, "To be honest, my initial goal was simple. I wanted you to work with me on this project. I wanted your influence and my skills to work together. Especially since your music party at the Tuileries Garden attracted so many celebrities and fashion insiders. Such sales and traffic are priceless."

Xiao Peng waved his hand and said, "How can I have any traffic? Doesn't the person you brought here know me?"

Zhao Shanhe angrily said, "Do you think she's someone who pays attention to the news? If you were wearing luxury goods, she'd definitely recognize it. No matter how obscure the brand, she knows it like the back of her hand. She can tell you everything about the brand's history, style, and designer! Interest is the primary motivation for learning!"

Xiao Peng laughed and said, "Everyone has their own expertise, but are you really going to just watch Johannes go after her?"

"If it were you, would you still want her?" Zhao Shanhe asked in return, "But this girl is very ambitious. Johannes won't be able to seduce her."

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Johannes walking out of the room dejectedly.

"So realistic! This girl is so realistic!" Johannes said as he sat across from Xiao Peng, "I used to think such realistic girls could only be found in France, but I didn't expect there are also such girls in China!"

After he finished speaking, Khedira high-fived him.

Zhao Shanhe was confused, so Xiao Peng explained, "European countries call themselves the European Union, but in reality, they all dislike each other. Ultimately, the saying goes, 'the bad ones are from other countries, and the good ones are from their own country.' They won't miss any chance to speak ill of another country! Johannes, why does she dislike you? Don't you think you're handsome?"

"Alas, she just ignored me when she heard I opened a foot massage parlor!"