This is Randi Hacker with another Postcard from Asia from the KU Center for East Asian Studies.

A recent blog post about a fake Apple store in Kunming, China has everyone in an uproar. It went viral, and all the major news agencies have jumped on it as if the existence of counterfeit enterprises in China were, well, news. Which it isn’t. The shanzhai culture is deeply entrenched here. Shanzhai, fake, counterfeit, bogus. Shanzhai copies of most Western brand name items are available. Ripoff Rolexes? Check. Knockoff Nikes? Check. Bogus Blahniks? Check. And it doesn’t stop there. Imitations of questionable quality can be found in all sectors from tobacco – mock Marlboros – to health care: counterfeit heart valves and phony pharmaceuticals. So the whole kerfuffle about that store in Kunming? Totally shanzhai.

From the KU Center for East Asian Studies, I’m Randi Hacker. Wish you were here.