Anti-counterfeit services gain traction

Companies are now availing anti-counterfeit advisory to ensure that their products are not duplicated and sold illegally in the market

Pharmaceutical companies, fast-moving consumer goods companies, retail companies and even liquor industry entities, all of them have one thing in common. Companies across these sectors are now availing of anti-counterfeit advisory to ensure that their products are not duplicated and sold illegally in the market.

Counterfeiting of products in industries such as pharma are not only harmful from a brands perspective, they could also potentially lead to life risks for those consuming such medicines. With international drug regulators becoming more active, it is imperative that such duplicate products are taken out of the market before they reach mass consumers.

Nikhil Bedi, Partner at Deloitte India, said anti-counterfeiting advisory solution is seeing robust demand, especially from sectors such as pharma, FMCG, retail, and even the liquor industry. Given the growing spread and availability of counterfeit products, this issue is gaining prominence among corporates, both globally as well as in India. 

Bedi said that pharmaceutical companies, especially, are more pro-active in taking action against counterfeit products and their manufacturers given that counterfeit drugs could lead to severe health issues and even fatalities. These anti-counterfeiting investigations are done by Deloitte Forensic with the objective of identifying the source of the counterfeit products, including manufacturers and distributors and the entire supply chain thereto.

This includes market survey, illicit and grey market goods investigation, investigation of supply chain of counterfeit goods and damage quantification. As per market research, brand value accounts for more than 30% of the stock market of companies in the S&P 500 Index. With more and more companies setting off higher amounts for brand building, marketing and brand marketing, industry officials said such services have also become a part of this exercise.

"The potential impact of counterfeit goods and products on the brand and reputation of companies coupled with revenue losses incurred is resulting in an increased demand for this service. In our experience, online anti-counterfeiting solutions are also gaining importance with the growth of the e-commerce industry in India," said Bedi.

When a potential fraud is detected, agencies conduct further investigation with the help of their internal team and external resources to delve deeper into it. This includes experts from the field and even investigative reporters. Once the fraud and the location is identified, police and other relevant authorities are intimated so that action can be taken against the wrong-doers.