Goodbye grey market sellers?
Greenhills announced its mission to transform from a mall with questionable sellers to a high-end one, a mall with actual registered vendors as part of its response to it being known as a large counterfeit hub in the Philippines as listed on the USTR (United States Trade Representative)’s 2024 review of Notorious Markets for Counterfeiting and Piracy.
Greenhills is the place to go for people who cannot afford original products and opt to purchase “class-A” or counterfeit material. The place is also rampant with stolen or fake smartphones and computers, and grey market sellers into the mix. Due to this, the Greenhills Shopping Center management, in collaboration with the San Juan government, will enforce a three-strikes policy against counterfeiters.
Although the shopping center is littered with fake goods, those who have been lingering around knows who and where exactly to get the latest grey market smartphones that most mainstream brands do not sell, such as Vivo’s iQoo series or the Google Pixel line. It is best that one has a contact to be safe in this area. Grey market items are legitimate products, but not intended to be sold by a particular business in a particular place. This means that warranties and aftersales are not supported, even if said brand has a presence in the country.
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Greenhills is no stranger to being raided by law enforcement due to a plethora of counterfeit goods being sold there. “The government, through the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights, has worked with right holders and shopping center management on implementing a transition program to transform Greenhills Shopping Center into a high-end mall with legitimate sellers,” Greenhills said on a report by Inquirer.
Between January and September 2024, about USD 618 million counterfeit goods were seized from the shopping center. The USTR, despite Greenhills’ notorious reputation, has cited efforts that the management and the government have done to remove its “counterfeit hub” status throughout the years.