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CNN Live At Daybreak

Italian Street Vendors vs. Designer Shops

Aired August 28, 2002 - 06:37   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: In Rome, Italy -- Rome, Italy, street vendors are giving designer labels a run for their money with their fashion knock-offs. And more people are picking them up, because they are cheaper.
CNN's Alessio Vinci has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): Nearly as famous as Rome's Spanish Steps (ph) are the luxury shops nearby in Via Condotti -- Prada, Gucci and others -- with their $700 handbags, $500 purses and $1,000 overcoats.

Also nearby, cut-rate competition, where you can pick up luxury item look-a-likes at a fraction of the price, often $100 or less. The problem is, the look-a-likes are fake.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Some say it's actually quite good. But I can tell the difference usually. I mean, I certainly can tell the difference in my own bag, and it's just that it feels nicer having, you know, just really lovely leather, really lovely workmanship.

VINCI: But some shoppers don't know the difference, or just don't care. In a recent survey, 80 percent of Italian consumers admitted to having knowingly bought fashion knock-offs because of the price.

And though there are plenty of buyers for the real thing, counterfeiting is a multi-billion dollar business that is costing fashion houses at the cash register, and tarnishing their image.

"The authorities seem to accept the fact that there are street vendors outside the museums and other venues across Italy," Bertelli says. "And the problem is that they do not know what to do with these people who are victims, too."

VINCI: In Italy, selling counterfeit goods is a civil offense, not a criminal one, but things may be about to change. The Italian government is setting up special courts with exclusive jurisdiction over counterfeiting.

And the financial police will continue their regular raids on warehouses, where millions of dollars of illegally-labeled goods are confiscated annually.

(on camera): So, how can you be so sure that what you buy is the real thing? Simple. Avoid street vendors or any other outlet selling the item at a faction of its original price. And luxury items, anyway, are sold at their trademark shops or sometimes at high-end retail stores.

(voice-over): And remember, if the price seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Alessio Vinci, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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