News Articles

Manchester and Salford named as the centre for counterfeit goods

According to Trading Standards, Manchester and Salford have topped the list of places in the UK for fake goods. An open-air market in Salford was recently closed as it was discovered that more counterfeit items were being sold than legitimate products. In the rag–trade area of Manchester a series of raids by enforcement officers over seven days resulted in the recovery of around £2m worth of counterfeit goods.

It is believed that the trade of these illegitimate goods costs the UK economy £1.3bn a year and industry insiders are urging the Government to take action to tackle the problem.

Pete Astley, a chief Trading Standards officer who sits on the national Intellectual Property Crime Group told the BBC in a radio interview: “Manchester and Salford is the centre of counterfeiting and piracy in the UK. We have areas in these cities where the market is very well developed and you’ll find everything and anything being sold in those areas.”

Glyn Roberts, a former policeman who assists businesses in countering the fake goods trade said: “Manchester and Salford are the distribution centres of 90% of counterfeit products in the UK. Trading Standards have tried to tackle it but it’s become such a size that they’re struggling.”

A Spokesman for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), said: “The recent raids in Manchester show that the Government, through the Intellectual Property Office, is working hard to crackdown on the trading of counterfeit goods.”

Our Business Services and Litigation teams work closely together to advise both businesses and individuals on all aspects of the protection and enforcement that can be afforded to their branding, creations and ideas from both non-litigious and litigious perspectives. In addition, the Firm's Business Services team can offer sound commercial advice as to the various methods of exploiting IPR including agency, distribution, sponsorship, franchising and other licensing arrangements. As such, the Firm is well placed to provide strategic advice as to the availability of Intellectual Property protection and then how to identify and manage potential infringement.

For more information and help on any of these topics please contact our Business Services team on 01908 660966 or fill out our online contact form.

• < < Go back to the previous page
• News Homepage