It is no secret that the retail industry in the U.S. has experienced some rough patches, leading many companies, especially those in the fashion industry, to report declining earnings and cut-down outlooks.
Americans have changed their mindset by spending more cautiously and making more conscious decisions, opting for what offers them better value for their money.
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There are nearly 262 thousand videos on TikTok with the hashtag #Dupe, in which people promote products that aim to imitate other pricier items at a fraction of the cost.
Additionally, there are over 5 million TikTok videos with the hashtag #Amazon, many of which include titles like "Skims dupe" or "Lululemon dupe," alluding to products people have found on Amazon that are incredibly similar to other brands.
Although a great hack for those who like a good deal, this trend has steered customers away from the real brands and instead influenced them to buy from mass producers who make a living off of stealing brands' styles and selling similar-looking products.
Amazon gets slammed with counterfeit accusations
TikTok users were not the first to discover the dupe industry that runs freely within the Amazon marketplace.
The tech giant has had multiple encounters with brands claiming to have found counterfeit items that replicate their own products, which has led Amazon to face a few lawsuits.
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In 2016, the German footwear brand Birkenstock (BIRK) announced it would remove all its products from Amazon's shopping platform due to the number of third-party Amazon sellers trying to sell look-alikes of its shoes. Since 2017, all Birkenstock products have been removed from Amazon's Marketplace.
That same year, the Mercedes-Benz Group (DDAIF) , formerly known as Daimler AG, filed a lawsuit against Amazon for allowing its third-party sellers to sell almost identical-looking yet quality-lacking versions of Mercedes-Benz wheels.
Amazon takes action against knock-offs, but its efforts seem weak
In 2019, Amazon (AMZN) launched a team that would be solely dedicated to helping brands protect their trademarks by pursuing criminal action against third-party sellers who intentionally sell counterfeit products on their marketplace.
In 2020, Maison Valentino and Amazon filed a joint lawsuit against an Amazon third-party seller for selling counterfeit versions of the Valentino Garavani Rockstud shoes, which violates Amazon's policies and Valentino's intellectual property rights.
“The vast majority of sellers in our store are honest entrepreneurs but we do not hesitate to take aggressive action to protect customers, brands, and our store from counterfeiters," said Dharmesh Mehta, Amazon's Vice president, Customer Trust and Partner Support.
American Eagle files lawsuit against Amazon for 'deceiving' shoppers
On Wednesday, American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) filed a lawsuit with the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York against Amazon, claiming that the tech giant infringed on its trademarked brand Aerie.
Aerie is a sub-brand owned by American Eagle that focuses on intimate apparel, loungewear, and activewear.
In the lawsuit, American Eagle accuses Amazon of purposefully deceiving its customers by using branding from the Aerie clothing line in Google search results that then guides shoppers to sponsored ads and shopping links, which lead them to dupes or knock-off products that are extremely similar-looking to the brand yet lack in quality and are sold for a lesser price.
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Although Aerie products are not sold on Amazon's shopping platform, the brand's gift cards can be purchased.
The dupes are not Amazon brand products but are rather products sold by multiple Amazon third-party sellers.
Additionally, American Eagle claims that it gave Amazon a warning earlier last month before filing the lawsuit, asking them to stop redirecting shoppers to the knock-off Aerie products.
The Street asked American Eagle for comments regarding the lawsuit but they said, "AEO does not provide comment on any ongoing litigation."
Amazon didn't immediately reply to The Street's request for comments.
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