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China counterfeits entire Apple store

China counterfeits entire Apple store

In general China has a very lax attitude toward counterfeiting. When I was there I went to a counterfeit market in Shanghai where I bought a $30,000 Panerai watch. Of course it wasn't really a $30,000 Panerai watch, it was a Chinese knockoff of a $30,000 Panerai watch which I got for about $45. It looked good. It fooled people - including people who collected watches - and until I walked into a pole and shattered the glass it held up pretty darn well. We also picked up several counterfeit purses, shoes and dresses for a pittance.

What I didn't realize is that you could counterfeit an entire store.

Blogger Bird Abroad reports how surprised they were to find an Apple Store in Kunming, China. Upon closer inspection, the reality hit them:

"...some things were just not right: the stairs were poorly made. The walls hadn’t been painted properly.

Apple never writes “Apple Store” on its signs – it just puts up the glowing, iconic fruit."

It's a fake Apple store! To make matters even more interesting, employees didn't seem to be in on the joke:

"...hand to God, all genuinely think they work for Apple."

They look like they do: Blue shirts. Name tags. But they don't:

"...they’re just filling the pockets of some shyster living in a prefab mansion outside the city by standing around a fake store disinterestedly selling what may or may not be actual Apple products that fell off the back of a truck somewhere."

No word on whether they offer Apple OS Dragon yet. More over at Global Post.

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