Singaporean man ordered to pay $157,000 in damages for selling fake Louis Vuitton goods on Instagram

Ng Hoe Seng operated two Instagram accounts to peddle counterfeit Louis Vuitton items as authentic, according to a written judgment by Justice Dedar Singh Gill of the High Court of Singapore last Wednesday.

The knockoffs, including phone cases, card holders, and purses, were sold at a fraction of the official price. One fake passport cover, for instance, went for just S$159, as against S$560-945 for a genuine one.

Louis Vuitton Malletier uncovered the infringement in July 2022 and launched a sting operation, The Straits Times reported.

One of its representatives bought around S$2,100 worth of goods from Ng’s first account, emcase_sg, and confirmed they were fake. A cease-and-desist letter followed in March 2023, and the page became inactive two months later.

But Ng resurfaced under a new handle, emcrafts_sg, and resumed selling counterfeit products and falsely advertising them as "100% authentic."

LVM told its representative to make another undercover purchase, this time worth S$471, to collect further proof of ongoing trademark violations.

The company filed a lawsuit in August 2023 but Ng did not take part in the legal proceedings or appear in court. The High Court ruled in LVM’s favor in November 2023 and proceeded to assess damages, according to Dim Sum Daily.

LVM, which had evidence showing Ng had continued selling counterfeit Louis Vuitton goods through May 2024, sought S$2.9 million in damages from Ng based on 29 acts of infringement, each set at the statutory cap of S$100,000.

However, Justice Gill found the claim excessive, expressing doubts about the brand’s claim that the counterfeits had diluted its brand, and ultimately awarded the brand S$200,000, as reported by Must Share News.

"I have my doubts as to whether the claimant will suffer lost sales in any significant way... knock-offs of luxury goods are usually not substitutable with the genuine goods," he said.

He also noted that Ng was a sole proprietor running a small operation on social media, not a large-scale commercial counterfeiter.

He criticized Ng for disregarding a previous court order by making his Instagram page private, while still keeping it accessible to followers. He also condemned Ng’s decision to ignore the legal proceedings, saying it took away an opportunity for LVM to fully uncover the extent of the infringement and assess its losses.

Despite the court ruling, it remains unclear whether the brand will be able to recover the awarded amount.

Ng’s registered business EMCASE SG had ceased registration with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority as at last Thursday while his two Instagram accounts had been deactivated.

However, a similarly named account, emcrafts.sg, which also seems to sell Louis Vuitton-branded merchandise, is now active with around 800 followers.

This one says its previous account has closed and describes itself as a small business with "100% authentic vintage bags."