Campaign targets fakes in self-storage facilities

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A new campaign in the UK targets the use of self-storage facilities for trading in counterfeits. Numerous storage providers already take part and thousands of counterfeits have been seized.

Aiming to curb illegal activities in self-storage facilities, the campaign “The Tick Box: Keep it Real. Keep it Legal.” has now been launched in the United Kingdom. The campaign e.g. focuses on the storage and trade of counterfeit goods – fakes are often seized in such rental storage units or on the way there, according to a statement on the launch of the campaign, which was initiated by the Self Storage Association of the United Kingdom (SSA-UK) as well as the British Intellectual Property Office (IPO), National Trading Standards, and London Trading Standards.

The campaign intends to prevent self-storage facilities from being used by counterfeiters; also, the people behind illegal products should be identified better and illegal goods intercepted before they can reach the market. In a dedicated code of conduct, the participating self-storage providers for example commit themselves to identifying their customers and supporting investigations of the authorities. In addition, they ask their customers to consent to the respective code of conduct when they sign their rental agreement for a storage unit. Initial successes are already visible: According to the campaign’s statement, thousands of counterfeit goods have already been seized, with an estimated value of millions of pounds.

Communications and awareness raising play a major role in the campaign too, which also operates its own website. For example, participating self-storage companies receive a “Tick Box“ logo and can display posters on their premises to deter counterfeiters and to show that they are taking anti-counterfeiting measures. In addition, more than 1,200 self-storage employees have already been trained, according to the campaign’s information.

Rennie Schafer, CEO of the SSA-UK, welcomes the action against illegal goods: “As an industry, we want to do all we can to eliminate such activity from our stores and the community as a whole.“ So far, 45 UK self-storage companies are already taking part in the campaign; this represents around 340 storage facilities. In a second phase, the program will now be rolled out further.

Sources: Inside Self-Storage, Intellectual Property Office, Tick Box project

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