Polo For the People

"Everybody was Kung Fu fighting  playing polo"

After 'Marco Polo Hiuui' and 'Polo Santa Roberta' in Hong Kong there is another Polo clone in Wangfujiang 王府井 Dajie 大街 , the busy shopping avenue of Beijing, called Polo Villae. The logo is a polo player shown from the right side of the polo pony. I am sure that the exclusive brand Polo Ralph Lauren is also not happy with this brand, but what adds insult to injury is the way the Polo Villae shop presents its products. Cheap, full of clutter and disorganised. A kind of Polo for the masses. They seem to clone the brand minus its exclusivity, thereby damaging the goodwill and reputation of the original brand.

Wangfujing Dajie in Beijing

From a distance it looks still exclusive

Pile up your products to show
your products are exclusive?

Bags and clothes, just
like the other Polo clones

You can find the infectious song Everybody was Kung Fu fighting by Carl Douglas (made in 1974) mixed with the hilarious comedy Kung Fu Hustle (2004), which makes all kinds of references to other movies, including the Matrix, here.    

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Marco Polo Hiuui: Knock-off Of Knock-off = Knock-off Square

Recently IP Dragon reported about Polo Santa Roberta, an "original" knock-off of Ralph Lauren's Polo brand and Burberry tartan pattern. However, when IP Dragon was taking a stroll down his Mong Kok neighbourhood, he learned that the knockoff is not so "original" after all. Marco Polo Hiuui is doing the same thing: mixing the Polo brand with that of Burberry's tartan pattern.

Ironic that Marco Polo, the iconic Italian explorer that marvelled about the Chinese technological developments and innovations of 1271 CE (actually especially the Mongol court, that, however, incorporated the best of Chinese culture and technology) that were unknown to the West, is now used as an icon for Chinese knock-offs. Given the incredible developments in China, I am sure China will again come up with original inventions, brands and artistic works, unknown to the West, soon.

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Polo Santa Roberta "Original" Mix of Ralph Lauren's Polo Brand And Burberry Tartan Pattern

Spotted today in Nathan Road, Mong Kok, Hong Kong: a shop with bags that carry the brand Polo Santa Roberta. Sounds very similar to the brand of Ralph Lauren; Polo and it looks very similar to the tartan pattern of Burberry.

Ai-ah! Another knock-off using the same ingredients: see Marco Polo Hiuui, here.

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