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 Business News | August 2005 
Piracy Battering Industry
 El Universal
| | Representatives from the cosmetics industry estimate their losses in the millions. |
The flyer reads: "Señora, don't throw them away, we'll buy your empty bottles of perfume. Just call and we will come and pick them up."
It goes on to offer 30 pesos (US3) for an empty flask of Lancome, while a Hugo Boss bottle is 35 (US3.50).
The offer may be tempting to those with empty perfume containers lying around, but the sale of the bottles, which are then filled with imitation perfumes and sold as brand-name products for a fraction of the cost, is causing a major headache for national and international cosmetics producers.
According to the National Chamber of the Perfume Industry, losses in 2004 from the growing sale of "pirate" fragrances are estimated at 1.7 billion pesos (US159 million).
Another blow to the industry has been the illegal import of perfumes that are then sold for up to 20 percent cheaper than the shelf price by going under the tax radar. Perfumes, as luxury items, are heavily taxed by the government.
Additionally, the majority of the nation's perfume sales take place in informal markets, where it is virtually impossible for authorities to control the quality and authenticity of the products. A report by the chamber warns that the pirate fragrances don't last as long as the legitimate versions and can cause rashes and skin irritation.
Big-name fragrance producers are doubly worried because of the unwanted side effects since many consumers are unaware they are buying a fake, they often refrain from buying the company's products, legitimate or otherwise.
According to research by EL UNIVERSAL, the counterfeit versions of the perfumes are up to 50 percent less than the shelf price.
The sellers of imitation perfumes collect the empty containers by buying them or paying pepenadores the city's trash sifters who go through the municipal dumps to find recyclable items to find them.
They also find the discarded boxes that go with the perfumes, although they are often not in good condition. |
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