How to avoid the "minefield" of intellectual property? SHEIN's first IP empowerment event provides intellectual property protection for cross-border merchants

What are the common intellectual property "minefields" in cross-border e-commerce ? What are the characteristics of patent infringement, trademark infringement and copyright infringement? How to enhance the core competitiveness of enterprises through intellectual property protection?

On April 28, the first event of the "Rare Gravitation • Innovation Era" IP empowerment plan initiated by SHEIN and China Strategic Intellectual Property Research Institute was officially held in Guangzhou. During the event, relevant officials from the Guangzhou Municipal Government, Guangzhou Panyu District Government, Guangzhou Market Supervision Administration (Intellectual Property Office), Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Commerce, Panyu District Market Supervision Administration and other departments attended the event, and representatives from dozens of key cross-border merchants in Guangzhou attended the event. Many authoritative experts in the field of intellectual property and law gave lectures on site, using intellectual property protection to help Chinese manufacturing and Chinese brands go overseas with high quality.

It is reported that under the "Rare Gravitation, Innovation Era" IP empowerment plan , SHEIN and China Strategic Intellectual Property Research Institute plan to hold hundreds of public welfare service activities for cross-border merchants within three years, and carry out brand and intellectual property protection public welfare services through education and training, practical tool development, one-on-one compliance and legal consultation, etc., to help more Chinese brands and merchants to ensure intellectual property compliance, protection and innovative development in the process of internationalization.

Huang Biao , Secretary of the Panyu District Committee of Guangzhou, pointed out in his speech that Panyu has more than 34,000 clothing companies, and SHEIN has also been deeply rooted here for 10 years, creatively forming a super-powerful clothing industry ecology from upstream fiber processing, R&D design, garment manufacturing, marketing channels, brand management, and partner sharing, and innovating the "on-demand production, small orders and fast response " digital flexible supply chain model, with the "independent brand + platform" dual engine development, among which SHEIN's independent brand has developed thousands of suppliers, and the platform has driven sellers from more than 300 cities in the country to go overseas, serving consumers in more than 150 countries and regions, and has grown into a global cross-border e-commerce leader, a global fashion leader, and one of the top ten unicorns in the world. It is hoped that SHEIN will continue to play a leading role, implement the IP empowerment public welfare plan, drive enterprises in the district, the city, the province, and even the whole country to borrow ships to go to sea, build ships to go to sea, build and share with good partners around the world, and work together to create the first highland of large international cross-border e-commerce enterprises, and make greater contributions to rebuilding a new Guangzhou.

Using intellectual property to protect overseas expansion and help cross-border merchants effectively "avoid risks"

Since 2014, cross-border e-commerce has been included in the "Government Work Report" for 11 consecutive years, and has become a new driving force for foreign trade growth and a "new force" in global trade. With the rapid growth of China's cross-border e-commerce transaction scale, in the innovation-driven global economy, intellectual property protection has become an important consideration for global decision makers and merchants, and has also become a major factor affecting the healthy and sustainable development of the cross-border e-commerce industry.

What are the common intellectual property minefields in cross-border e-commerce ? What are the characteristics of patent infringement, trademark infringement and copyright infringement? How can cross-border e-commerce comply with intellectual property regulations? How can enterprises enhance their core competitiveness through intellectual property protection? Jin Yongfeng, associate professor of the Intellectual Property School of Jinan University Law School, pointed out in a training lecture that common intellectual property minefields for cross-border e-commerce sellers include: directly copying or slightly modifying other people's unique and novel products and selling them; copying other people's pictures, product descriptions, etc. It is recommended that cross-border merchants conduct a comprehensive search and identify brand-related intellectual property rights before listing products, and cross-border merchants who encounter infringement in these aspects can also actively seek legal assistance to safeguard their own rights and interests.

Many experts stressed that it is critical for cross-border merchants to identify the main intellectual property rights of third-party brands, such as patents, trademarks, and copyrights, when going overseas. At the same time, if merchants provide and produce products for third-party brands, they should also be careful to avoid infringement on third-party brands.

"It's very rewarding! I hope there will be more sharing like this in the future to open up and improve our cognition." Several cross-border merchants from Panyu, Guangzhou said that improving cognition in the field of intellectual property can avoid many unnecessary troubles. Some merchants are dealing with trademark infringement issues caused by unfamiliarity with the rules, and some merchants are facing infringement issues such as frequent misappropriation of product images by merchants on other platforms. Merchant representatives said that they look forward to more detailed training on subcategories and infringement types in the subsequent IP empowerment plan.

"IP empowerment work is not achieved overnight. It requires the joint efforts of the government, associations, especially leading enterprises and all sectors of society." Liu Yueping, president of the Guangdong Garment and Apparel Industry Association, believes that through lectures by well-known experts and guidance from professional institutions, the IP awareness and literacy of enterprises can be effectively improved, the IP management and dispute response capabilities can be improved, and the comprehensive competitiveness of enterprises can be enhanced. "We also look forward to the IP empowerment plan to strengthen cooperation with all sectors in public service systems, talent cultivation, brand development, domestic and international exchanges and cooperation, enhance international competitiveness, and jointly contribute to the high-quality development of Guangdong's industries."

Providing hundreds of public welfare services for intellectual property in three years to enhance the core competitiveness of brands going overseas

"The topics involved in this event are not only technical issues of intellectual property protection, but also key issues related to industrial upgrading and effective response to technical barriers to foreign trade. It is a big and very meaningful exploration." Lan Weining, deputy director of the Guangzhou Market Supervision Administration (Intellectual Property Office), said, "We hope that through the solid development of the event, it will bring tangible benefits to upstream and downstream companies and effectively enhance the core competitiveness of companies and brands.

As Chinese companies are moving overseas towards technology and branding, the collaboration among the government, associations and businesses to empower Chinese manufacturing and Chinese companies’ overseas expansion with intellectual property rights is of particular significance.

"Building its own brand has always been one of SHEIN's core strategies. Its independent brands have also been recognized and loved by consumers overseas. With its own brands as the core, SHEIN has established an intellectual property protection system that integrates copyrights, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets. In the process of coping with international competition, we have deeply realized the important role of intellectual property in brand and innovation protection." Sun Xun, senior vice president of SHEIN, said, "Combining the development and experience of SHEIN's own brands, we will provide public welfare services for intellectual property empowerment for cross-border merchants across the country, hoping to help more Chinese brands and merchants comply with intellectual property regulations, protect and innovate in the process of internationalization."

Founded in 2012, SHEIN has grown into a world-leading online fashion and lifestyle retailer driven by the dual model of "own brand + platform", directly serving consumers in more than 150 countries and regions around the world. Its own brand SHEIN has become one of the world's four major fashion brands on par with UNIQLO and ZARA, and was selected as one of the top ten growing brands in the United States in 2023, along with global top brands such as ChatGPT and CocaCola. It is the only Chinese brand selected and the only fashion brand selected worldwide. Over the years, through its industry-leading flexible on-demand "small order fast response" model, as well as technological innovation, training support , factory expansion and community public welfare services, it has fully empowered suppliers to help them transform digitally. In this process , SHEIN's own brand is also facing brand protection issues overseas. It continues to improve its intellectual property protection system, protect the innovation and development of China's own fashion brands , and continuously enhance the value of Chinese brands. It is reported that many courts have issued temporary injunctions prohibiting other platforms from infringing on SHEIN's own brand. The development and protection practices of SHEIN's own brand overseas also indirectly reflect the actual achievements and effectiveness of Guangzhou's overseas intellectual property protection work.

At the same time , SHEIN is also constantly extending its platform model. Since 2021, sellers from industrial belts in more than 300 cities across the country have settled in the SHEIN platform. Following the launch of the " Xiyou Gravitational Million Sellers Plan " and the "National 500 Cities Industrial Belt Overseas Plan" last year, SHEIN recently launched the "2024 Intellectual Property Promotion Week Launch and Guangzhou Intellectual Property Achievement Exhibition Special Event" jointly sponsored by the Guangzhou Intellectual Property Work Leading Group Office, Guangzhou Market Supervision Administration (Intellectual Property Office), Guangzhou Culture, Radio, Film and Tourism Bureau, etc. , SHEIN launched an intellectual property empowerment public welfare plan, aiming to better help merchants participate in and adapt to cross-border trade, empower sellers throughout their life cycle, help more Chinese manufacturing and Chinese brands create new quality productivity and brand power, and promote their high-quality overseas expansion.

"Before, due to the lack of resources and awareness in this area, we could not find professional and effective channels to deal with infringements of our own brands. SHEIN's experience and practice in overseas brand protection has brought confidence to merchants committed to building Chinese brands overseas . " Merchants participating in the conference said, "Now SHEIN has launched intellectual property empowerment training and activities, and has received attention and support from the government, associations and all sectors of society. We merchants are more confident in going overseas . "

It is reported that SHEIN's plan will take three years, starting from Guangzhou, and gradually expand to the entire province, and further to the business groups across the country that are interested in engaging in cross-border trade. It will provide hundreds of public welfare service activities, comprehensively improve the level of intellectual property application, management and protection of cross-border merchants across the country, and enable them to have a basic awareness of cross-border intellectual property protection and the ability to respond to and solve typical intellectual property issues, help innovation and brand building, and enable more Chinese brands to go overseas and develop internationally.

Liu Yueping pointed out that the plan not only reflects SHEIN's foresight and social responsibility, but also has extraordinary significance for the Guangdong apparel industry. "Intellectual property rights, as an important factor in promoting sustainable fashion, not only protect creativity and brand achievements, but also stimulate the innovation vitality of the entire industry. By strengthening intellectual property protection, we can promote the green, low-carbon and circular development of the fashion industry and achieve a win-win situation in economic and social benefits."

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intellectual property

Empowerment Activities