Last week, reports of fake Apple stores in China surfaced and has been one of the most popular topics in the web. Now, Chinese authorities have been reported to shut down these fake Apple stores for operating without business licenses.
After searching 300 electronic stores in the city, the Kunming Trade and Industry Bureau found five fake Apple shops when it launched its investigation. The investigation took place after an American living in the city named Bird Abroad posted a blog entry revealing the existence of these fake Apple stores.
On BirdAbroad’s blog, she revealed that there was an Apple store rip-off in the city, which she said was a “beautiful ripoff – a brilliant one – the best ripoff store we had ever seen.”
Out of the five stores found, two of these were ordered to be shut down as they lack official business licenses. Apple has around 900 authorized retail outlets in China, but it still failed to keep up with the high demand, forcing people to buy from unsanctioned vendors.
“In areas outside of the biggest cities, it’s difficult to find Apple products, and there is strong demand,” said Shenyin & Wanguo Securities Co. analyst Jim Tang. “For a big country like China, Apple’s sales network doesn’t go far enough, and the company needs to expand.”
Yu Cheng, who owns three of the fake stores in Kunming said that he is not violating any laws and is actually “doing Apple a favor.”
Even though they are selling authentic Apple products, it is still illegal to sell these devices without the consent of Apple.
via: Tech Crunch
