Protecting brand assets

The Label Academy’s third virtual master class covered the state of the art in brand protection and anti-counterfeiting technologies.  

 

As James Bevan, director of consultancy Vandagraf, noted, the scale of the global counterfeiting problem is terrifying. According to OECD figures, counterfeit and pirated products are valued at 509 billion USD, representing well over 3 percent of world trade. But even these figures are likely a gross underestimate of the true scale of counterfeiting activity, said Bevan, since they only represent export seizures by customs, not counterfeits which circulate in domestic markets. Furthermore, the OECD figures cover mainly consumer and pharma products, potentially leaving out industrial component counterfeits such as microchips, auto and aero-related products. 

 

Footwear represents well over one fifth of all counterfeit seizures, followed by clothing, leather goods and electrical appliances. A shocking 7 percent of 

counterfeits are medical equipment and pharma products.

 

Bevan pointed to the exponential growth of online retailing, magnified by the impact of lockdowns during the Covid pandemic, as a major driver of counterfeit products, including Covid test kits and PPE. 

 

Regular L&L contributor Vicki Strull, branding consultant at Vicki Strull Design, looked at how packaging – particularly in the context of e-commerce sales – can help reassure consumers they have received an authentic product. 

 

Strull pointed out that factors such as robustness of the packaging construction, choice of substrate, print technology, color consistency and use of advanced finishing techniques combine to give the consumer an expectation of quality which can be used as a benchmark when a product is delivered.

Strull pointed to embellishment in particular as a way for brands to distance themselves from fake products, which are always produced as cheaply as possible. These features should be photographed in high resolution and shown clearly on the social media or web page as a reference for the consumer. 

 

Given that footwear represents the biggest category of counterfeit goods, it was fitting to hear about the industry’s response from Christina Mitropoulos, 

director of brand protection and manufacturing initiatives at the American Apparel & Footwear Association. 

 

Representing 360 member companies from manufacturers to brands and retailers, the AAFA’s Brand Protection Council (BPC) focuses particularly on the proliferation of counterfeit goods found on online marketplaces and social media platforms.

 

Technology response

 

Paul Dunn, chair of the International Holographic Manufacturers Association, demonstrated how holography has evolved to become an integral component of sophisticated multi-layer security systems. 

 

After talking about new technology developments such as the use of nano-level optical structures, he used a sophisticated security label developed for the Tonino Lamborghini brand as a case study. This label is constructed from a high security tamper-evident substrate and includes, along with the hologram, alphanumeric numbering (Unique Identification number, or UID) and a QR code. 

The labels are applied to Lamborghini swing tickets and warranty cards, which themselves incorporate advanced anticounterfeit print techniques and spot UV security varnishes. 

 

Using OpSec’s Insight platform all shipments of the hologram security labels are tracked to Tonino Lamborghini’s manufacturers, meaning the location, product traceability and status of every UID is known at all times. As manufacturers apply the labels, they are required to declare within the InSight platform which UIDs have been used.

 

It allows the active monitoring of online sales channels and can detect patterns of infringing sellers. Consumers participate in the authentication process by scanning a QR code to register their product.

 

The contribution of digital printing to a brand protection strategy was examined by Moshiko Levhar, EMEA security and brand protection business manager, Graphics Solutions Business, HP. Levhar examined the multi-layered nature of effective brand security systems, taking in forensic, covert, 

semi-covert (requiring tools such as a magnifying glass) and overt technologies. 

 

Digital print allows a wide range of variable graphic elements to be incorporated into a label, including micro QR codes, serialized microtext, guilloches 

and human-readable QR codes. Levhar explained that HP works with a number of partners where specific secure technologies are implemented. For example, where anti-diversion rather than anti-counterfeit is the goal, ScanTrust provides its secure track and trace QR code technology.

Footwear represents well over one fifth of all counterfeit seizures, followed by clothing, leather goods and electrical appliances. A shocking 7 percent 

of counterfeits are medical equipment and pharma products.

Covert digital print technologies include printing of invisible yellow QR codes or other serialized text or codes. These can be combined with forensic high end security inks to create multi-layered brand protection systems. 

 

Other techniques HP’s partners bring to the table include embedding a secure graphic within a QR code, making it impossible to copy. 

 

A case study protecting a high-value Ginseng brand cited by Levhar involved a combination of unique QR codes and a guilloche symbol which appears both on the pack and on the consumer’s smartphone screen, so the two can be compared. This provides both an additional layer of overt security and an interesting way to engage the consumer.