One of my classmates, Hannah, wrote a post titled “Tiffany vs. Costco?” that is about Costco using the “Tiffany” name for their engagement rings. I agree with Hannah that Costco committed a highly unethical business behavior by putting a “Tiffany” name on their engagement rings to attract customers and boost profits.
Indeed, this will cause a significant damage not only to Costco but to the luxury image that Tiffany Co. brings to customers. (Although in my opinion Tiffany Co. is not really that a luxurious brand compared to Cartier, Van Clef Arpels, or Harry Winston.) I strongly agree and support a law suit against Costco for damaging not only the brand image of Tiffany Co. but committing fraud to their customers. There is a part of me believe that the customers who shop at Costco and bought the so called “Tiffany” engagement rings know they are buying unauthentic ones due to the large discounts and it is very likely that they had never walked into a Tiffany store before. In other words, the customers that bought those rings might not even care if it was Tiffany or not. In addition, Tiffany Co. might face problems in the lawsuit as “Tiffany” can be a generic term to describe a particular mount or setting used in a ring in which it is commonly used among various jewelers. Also could this lawsuit bring too much public attention especially from their loyal customers that there are counterfeit rings sold in Costco in which will bring a negative impact instead?
Back in the Costco stores in Taiwan, they sell Louis Vuitton bags to Cartier watches. In my opinion any luxury product that ends of up in a wholesale store or outlet is a complete total destruction to the luxury brand image.
