(MENAFN- Live Mint) Mokobara, a brand quickly shaping the future of travel style, is at the center of controversy over allegations of "white labeling". The brand faced backlash on social media over claims that "Mokobara original design nahi hai, sab chinese hai. [the designs of Mokobara are not original, all of then are Chinese]."
Not only the allegation, but also the brand's reaction to this claim has left many "surprised." A person on social said,“Mokobara seems to be sidestepping and mocking the allegation and the 'Whitelabel ' code adds salt to the wound too, with chutzpah 🤭”
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Mokobara selling Chinese bags at premium prices? "White labeling" is a business practice where one company produces a product or service, and another company rebrands it as their own. Here, Mokobara is "accused of sourcing generic designs from Chinese manufacturers and selling them at premium prices in India without owning any intellectual property (IP) rights."
However, a social media user, Karthik, made an effort to fact-check this claim. He posted on X,“Mokobara's designs are its own and it has spent quite a bit of time, effort, and money in its original designs. In fact, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) website lists Mokobara's registered designs for multiple products.”
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Even Mokobara's website says that all the company's products are ideated and designed at our HQ in Bangalore, India, and are“manufactured all across Asia [India, China, Thailand and Indonesia].”
"I don't see/think Mokobara has tried to hide this fact. It's mentioned right on their website. Using the manufacturing facilities in China based on original designs is very common. Even Apple does it, besides many, many brands," Karthik noted.
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He claimed that it“looks more like Chinese copycats copied Mokobara's designs possibly because they thought there's good market for it.”
Witty or cold? How has Mokobara reacted
Mokobara had a witty response to "white labeling" charges against it. It posted a video about its products on X, and said, "While the world debates the chicken or the egg, we're focussed on what we do best - creating originals worth imitating."
The company posted this while announcing the launch of its Moko x Naruto Series and introduced a 10 percent“originality” discount using the code“WHITELABEL.”
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"Dropping now: the Moko x Naruto Series - from one fan to another. To our Moko fam, this one's for you. Use code WHITELABEL to get 10% off on originality!❤️," Mokobara's post added.
Netizen's divided
This response, social media user Karthik said, "seems to be sidestepping and mocking the allegation and the 'Whitelabel ' code adds salt to the wound too, with chutzpah 🤭"
However, the brand's response didn't go down well with some netizens. One rebuked,“Very disappointing reply. Mokobara taking their user base for granted. Solid response would have been appreciated instead of this childish witty response. If it's white labelling accept it, if not prove it, honesty would have been appreciated”
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But Karthik believes it's a "pretty bold reaction from the brand, in terms of PR and corporate communications."
Although he posed several questions: "Why didn't Mokobara explain its stand directly? Is it based on the assumption that only a (relatively) small number of online folks are outraged and addressing it directly may give visibility to the allegation afresh, again, and Mokobara too would be shining light on them? Or does Mokobara think that their stand has always been clear, and it is pointless to address (in good faith) something that is untrue?"
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