Counterfeit Supreme company, Supreme Italia, opens first store in China
Supreme Italia, the counterfeit business that exploited a legal loophole to pose as the popular streetwear brand, has opened its first retail store in China.
A counterfeit organisation posing as streetwear label Supreme has opened a store in Shanghai
The store opened last week in Shanghai on the popular shopping strip of Huaihai Zhong Lu, among major international brands including Nike, Ray Ban, Theory, Adidas, Swatch, Uniqlo and a host of high-end luxury malls.
The store, which is selling Supreme branded products including T-shirts, hats, backpacks and even Supreme x Rimowa collaboration suitcases, launched with an opening party featuring Chinese media, VIP clients and influencers, according to reports.
The counterfeit company was exposed last year after Samsung China announced a collaboration with Supreme, which was quickly refuted by Supreme New York.
The official brand released a statement denying it was working with Samsung, prompting Samsung to reveal it was working with Supreme Italia, a legal business, which has used a loophole in Italian law to successfully run a counterfeit business off the back of the Supreme New York brand.
Supreme Italia owns the rights to sell Supreme branded products in China, which the official Supreme brand does not own. While the brand is hugely popular in China, Chinese consumers can only purchase official products outside of China.
Samsung axed the partnership with Supreme Italia last month. However, despite the controversy about breaching copyright, Supreme Italia has continued its plans to open numerous stores in China.