Nice Premium: Is it important for you to inaugurate the Tax Free trade show?
Luc Chatel: Yes, because duty free represents a significant economic activity, with over 110,000 jobs in France. I also came to deliver a strong message about the fight against counterfeiting.
Nice Premium: When we talk about Tax Free, we mostly talk about luxury products. How do you think this market will react in the face of the economic climate?
Luc Chatel: I believe that the current slowdown of the global economy will affect all sectors, including luxury.
Firstly, because luxury products are “superior goods” as economists say. Luxury is closely tied to income growth: when growth picks up, luxury spending soars. When growth slows, luxury struggles. Secondly, because this sector is very open to international trade, the pace of which is likely to slow down.
We need to move forward and invest to prepare for the future by focusing on creativity.
Nice Premium: Counterfeiting is very prevalent in the Alpes-Maritimes department due to its proximity to Italy. What measures has the French government adopted to combat it?
Luc Chatel: On this topic, we need to face the truth, without beating around the bush. And recognize that, despite all our efforts, counterfeiting continues to expand.
It has become a real industry, taking full advantage of the globalization of trade and the rise of new technologies like the internet.
According to the OECD, international trade of counterfeit or pirated goods would represent at least $200 billion in 2005. That’s more than the value of the luxury market alone.
Nationally, France takes the fight against counterfeiting very seriously and has equipped itself with an effective and deterrent legal arsenal to combat counterfeiting.
In France, counterfeiting constitutes a criminal offense punishable by fines of up to 500,000 euros and 5 years of imprisonment.
Nice Premium: You have just signed the Cannes Declaration on this subject, can you tell us more?
Luc Chatel: I asked Bernard Brochand, president of the National Anti-Counterfeiting Committee (CNAC), and Benoรฎt Battistelli, director-general of INPI, to adopt a joint declaration on the fight against counterfeiting with Mediterranean basin countries, which, I hope, foreshadows a broader union in the future.
Concretely, this declaration, which brings together the Mediterranean Basin countries most committed to fighting counterfeiting (Bulgaria, Spain, France, Italy, Morocco, Portugal, Romania, Tunisia, Turkey), aims to better coordinate the anti-counterfeiting fight, continue raising consumer awareness, especially at trade shows and in tourist areas, and strengthen enforcement against counterfeiters and distributors, especially online.
