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REPORTING COUNTERFEIT



When you see a product carrying the Timberland® brand name, we want you to know that that product’s going to stand up to our high standards – and yours. We’re committed to ensuring that the Timberland® brand remains a symbol of quality and durability. If you suspect a location or website is offering counterfeit Timberland® products, please report it to counterfeit@vfc.com.



HOW DO I KNOW IF I'VE PURCHASED A FAKE TIMBERLAND®  PRODUCT?
Counterfeiting is the illegal practice of passing off imitation products as brand-name products. Though they may look similar to Timberland® products at first glance, they are often made from poor quality materials and lack the detailing and craftsmanship our brand is known for. 


If you’ve bought a suspicious product online - or are considering a purchase, but are not 100% sure it’s genuine - send an email to counterfeit@vfc.com with the name of the website in question. We will tell you if that particular website is authorized to sell genuine Timberland® branded products.



WHAT IS TIMBERLAND DOING ABOUT COUNTERFEITING?
Timberland takes the issue of counterfeiting very seriously, and the company has an intensive, global Anti-Counterfeiting Enforcement Program to fight this ongoing problem. This includes training various government and enforcement agencies worldwide on how to distinguish genuine Timberland® brand products from counterfeit items.


Organizations working to protect the brand and its customers include Customs Enforcement, the FBI, consumer protection agencies, U.S. Immigration and the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security. We also employ more than 100 different law firms and investigation agencies worldwide for the purpose of protecting the Timberland® brand.



WHAT'S SO BAD ABOUT SELLING COUNTERFEIT PRODUCT?
Counterfeiting isn’t just harmful to a brand. It’s harmful to you, your way of life and society in general. As well as denying customers quality items that have been professionally designed and tested, there are environmental and ethical reasons why fake goods should be avoided. 


Counterfeiting is bad because:

  • Counterfeiting is illegal.
  • Many manufacturers and suppliers of counterfeit products do not hold valid business licenses or pay taxes.
  • Counterfeit products are not manufactured with any type of quality or safety standards.
  • Counterfeit products can be made with inferior materials and/or ingredients/components that are harmful to both people and the environment. These products can fall apart and/or cause consumer injury.
  • Production facilities used to manufacture counterfeit products often use child or forced labor and do not have basic safety and wellbeing measures such as fire escapes and ventilation.
  • Research has shown that some counterfeit activity has funded organized crime syndicates and terrorist groups. When you buy counterfeit products, you are funding and supporting these criminal activities.



HOW CAN I PROTECT MYSELF FROM BUYING COUNTERFEIT PRODUCTS ONLINE?
There are some basic ways anyone can avoid counterfeit goods online. Be wary of auction sites, as there is no guarantee the items being offered are genuine. Be suspicious of "lookalike" sites that try to mimic official websites. Your anti-malware software might even be triggered by some sites.


These clues will tell you that the site may not be legitimate:

  • Many counterfeit websites try to deceive consumers into thinking it is the authorized timberland.com website, by including the word "timberland" or a variation of the word, such as "tims" or "timbs" in the domain name, or a subtle change like timberlands.net or timber1and.com.
  • These websites also copy the design or layout of the authorized timberland.com website.
  • Look for links on these particular sites that appear questionable (for example, links to other brands' websites, auction sites, blogs, etc.).
  • Look for contact information/email addresses that don't appear legitimate, for example timberlandemail@gmail.com etc.
  • Look for misspelled words or grammatical errors.
  • Look for offers for bulk orders.
  • Be aware of product quality once you receive your goods. Genuine Timberland® branded products are held to high quality standards related to materials, production, performance and chemical use. Counterfeit products will have defects, strong chemical odors, labels with unknown images or names, etc.
  • Remember: If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.
  • Other details to look out for include poor-quality boxes and packaging, logos that aren’t quite right, styles you’ve never seen anywhere before, and generally bad finishing, including in adhesives and stitching. The more corners counterfeit producers cut, the higher their profits, so if you can give the shoes a really good inspection, you’ll start seeing flaws that would never have made it past our quality control specialists. The safest way to avoid fakes is to only buy from Timberland® stores or our authorized retailers (see below).



WHERE CAN I BUY AUTHENTIC TIMBERLAND® PRODUCTS?
Genuine Timberland® products can be purchased on www.timberland.com, Timberland® Specialty Retail Stores, Timberland® Factory Stores and authorized retailers. Timberland does not sell products in internet auctions, through individuals, via street vendors or in flea markets, and these products have a likelihood of being counterfeit or stolen property.


Genuine Timberland® boots, shoes and clothing are available through many retail channels, not just Timberland® stores. General retailers won’t have as large a range of products, and will only sell the more popular styles, but if it’s an authorized seller, they are certainly genuine.


There isn’t enough room here to list every single retailer that sells authentic Timberland® products, but as a rule of thumb, if it’s a well-known retailer, you can probably be confident that its stock of Timberland® products is genuine. However, there are also lots of independent stores that we’re proud to have partnerships with. Specialist outdoor activities shops often stock Timberland® products, as do workwear retailers, for example. The rules above about checking for quality, packaging and details all apply here too. With a careful eye and feel you can usually identify fakes quickly, especially if you’re familiar with Timberland® products.


For store locations, see the Store Locator at the bottom of the page. 



HOW CAN I REPORT A COUNTERFEIT OR FAKE PRODUCT?
If you suspect a location or website is offering counterfeit Timberland® branded products, report it to counterfeit@vfc.com. Timberland takes these matters seriously and investigates any lead that is reported by consumers. We have a moral, ethical and financial incentive to chase up counterfeiters and prosecute any offenders.


We would appreciate customers contacting us with any suspicions whether they buy a product or not. As we have pointed out above, this is not merely a commercial issue – it runs deeply into organized crime, people trafficking, unsafe working conditions and environmental damage, so reporting and pursuing counterfeiting operations is important for society as a whole.