The main distributor of Hello Kitty products, Rubber Band Enterprise initiated a raid on four shops which were allegedly selling counterfeit products bearing the popular Japanese character trade mark. The raid followed a two-month long investigation conducted by the distributors’ lawyers and private investigators.

The sales and marketing manager of Rubber Band Enterprise said that the company had been granted the right to sell Hello Kitty products since July last year. However, as a result of the counterfeiters’ activities, the company had not been doing as well as expected. This is not surprising considering the fact that the counterfeit products are five times cheaper than the genuine ones.

A spokesman for Sanrio, the Japanese manufacturer of Hello Kitty products, also stated that it was necessary to wipe out counterfeits to preserve and protect Sanrio’s reputation and intellectual property rights. He indicated that Sanrio would conduct more raids in the future.

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