Coats Thread Lanka:

To fight and rid market of counterfeits

Coats Thread Lanka (CTL) launched its battle against fakes, coupled with steps to remove counterfeit products from the local market.

CTL markets the world renowned embroidery brand 'Anchor' which is targeted primarily at craft enthusiasts, together with its consumer sewing brands, 'Sun' and 'Astra' which largely target tailors and housewives. Sales and Marketing Manager (Craft and Consumer Thread) of Coats Thread Lanka Suranjith Swaris said, "the threat of counterfeits for the Sun brand was at its peak during 2007/2008.

We have been vigilant and working with the law enforcement authorities to counter this threat by organizing periodic surprise raids based on information received from the public." Guilty parties have been brought before Court and duly fined. As a result of this, several parties have had their stores duly checked and all counterfeit products removed from their hold".

As per the Intellectual Property Act No. 36 of 2003, selling, distributing and keeping counterfeits is a punishable offence. In these circumstances the retailers and wholesalers should be vigilant when purchasing thread and obtain a receipt for all purchases.

Therefore customers are advised to kindly inform the company if they find any items which are not original "SUN" brand thread.

"We as a Company with over 30 years presence in Sri Lanka, are confident that with the support of our thousands of loyal customers, we will be able to eradicate all Coats counterfeit items during this year. As we work tirelessly towards achieving this end, we are also keeping a vigilant eye on all retailers and wholesalers in the market and will take drastic action where necessary", Swaris added.