To appreciate the context of this article it is recommended that you first read ‘On the quest of the copy watch’ Parts I and II.

Shenzhen, China

Hannes, my implacable Finnish guide to replica watch manufacturing in Shenzhen, sat next to me as the taxi weaved its way in and out of numerous cramped and crowded streets. We were heading to a so called reception office of Lucky Brothers Trading.

We had arrived in Shenzhen from Khabarovsk, Far Eastern Russia via Hong Kong.

Hannes is a replica watch mule. He takes replica watches from the factory in Shenzhen and delivers them to a contact in Khabarovsk. From there the watches take the long journey into Russia, then Europe and sometimes way beyond.

I had accompanied him to Shenzhen to find out more about the replica watch business, reputed to cost the Swiss watch industry billions every year, despite the fact that one million fake watches are seized and destroyed each year.  I wanted to know if, as claimed, the increasing trade in fake watches around the globe really is fuelling other criminal activities including human trafficking, prostitution, terrorism, drugs and wide-scale money laundering.

Money laundering I could believe, but human trafficking? Was I sitting next to a man who was aware that his every fake watch sale was lining the pockets of his Russian boss to spend on human trafficking, and worse, terrorism?

If Hannes, a calm, quiet young Finn who seemed unphased by everything, was part of a major crime syndicate, there was a distinct chance I had already overstepped the mark, having asked a lot of questions earlier that morning.

I couldn’t help but be a little concerned, and as the taxi weaved through side streets with kids peering through the taxi windows, I began to question the wisdom of my investigation.

We reached a scruffy building lined by grimy side streets cluttered with laundry hanging from overhead poles. A woman was perched on a stool.

Rolex HQ

Replica watch HQ

I had to smile. Having been inside some of the most cutting edge watch manufactures in the world in Switzerland, this was the replica watch counterpart. If they were making billions from the sale of fake watches, they definitely weren’t investing it in their premises.

When you look at the replica watch industry at ground level it’s much easier to spot the fake.

Hannes paid the taxi driver and we climbed out of the car. At that moment Hannes phone rang. He turned away from me and answered the phone. Clearly this was a conversation not for my ears. Not that it would have mattered because Hannes was speaking in Mandarin, Mandarin with a Nordic accent. I stood on the street watching the washer woman in the alley and casually took a picture with my mobile.

Hannes finished the call and shrugged.

“It’s bad news. The boss is very busy today and can’t meet with you. He has to cancel.”

Now, not only was there to be no factory visit, there was to be no meeting at all. The Lucky Brothers had obviously decided that if they wanted to stay lucky it was wise not to entertain inquisitive foreigners. It was the typical non confrontational way of handling things that is so common throughout all of South East Asia. If there’s a problem, just avoid it. Don’t meet, don’t say anything, and don’t explain.

More disappointment

More disappointment, but also a sense of relief. If you’re selling and manufacturing millions of dollars of replica watches every year you really do have to be very careful who your friends are. The Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH) alongside the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) really are sending people out to China to investigate, report back, and then press charges.

It used to be just replica watches and designer bags, but replica goods are rapidly spreading to car parts, plane parts, a terrifying thought, and then textiles, leather goods, and most disturbing of all, over the counter medicines and baby formula. Fake medicines have already claimed the lives of countless Africans, one of the key continents for that particular trade.

I asked Hannes if we could continue to talk, but he politely declined. He had more errands to run. In truth, he had clearly been warned off.

Standing outside a replica watch den in the mid day humidity of a Shenzhen backstreet probably wasn’t the ideal place to try and deliver any wise words to a young man caught up in a bad business, but I felt it my duty to try.

I told him straight.

“Hannes, you’re a smart guy and a nice guy, but you’re in a lousy business. There’s a reason they call these watches Franken watches, it’s not just about the phoney parts, it’s about the soul of the product. They might look the same but there’s no soul. For as long as you’re in a fake business, you’re going to be dealing with fake people, who won’t have your or anyone else’s interests at heart. Why not quit. Quit right now. Come back with me.”

“I’m going to do this for two more years” explained Hannes,” then I will quit, or maybe go to the other side.”

“Maybe they won’t let you quit, Hannes. Maybe they will want you to import fake baby formula or fake medicines. Just walk away.”

It fell on deaf ears.

“Philip, I am going back to the factory now. You don’t have to worry about me.”

A most difficult path

We walked a short way in silence and reached the entrance to a dismal graffiti strewn underpass. The type your mother always warned you about.

“I’m going this way” said Hannes pointing to the tunnel.

The tunnel stretched before him as a powerful visual metaphor for the griminess of the whole business he was serving.

“You have chosen for yourself a most difficult path” I said.

Hannes hitched his rucksack onto his shoulder. We shook hands. I would be gone by the time he returned to the hotel. I took a picture of him walking away.

I felt the emptiness of a story unfulfilled, of being unable to convince a seemingly smart young man that he is headed on the wrong path.

It’s probably the same empty feeling you get when you know the watch you are wearing is fake.

Swiss Day Against Counterfeiting

In Switzerland alone it is estimated that the loss incurred by companies to counterfeiting amounts annually to some two billion Swiss francs. The number of jobs lost because of counterfeiting stands at over 200,000 worldwide, including 100,000 in Europe.

Recently, students from several Swiss arts and graphic design colleges were encouraged to design posters and short films that create awareness of the problem. This poster is my own particular favourite: