‘Made In PRC’ Is Nothing But ‘Made In China’!

Next time if you don’t find the ‘Made In China’ label on a product that does not mean the product was not necessarily made in China. Because, some Chinese brands and Chinese companies have found a ‘smart’ way to fool Indian consumers in the wake of raising brand consciousness. As the hostility between India and China grew over the past few months and none other than PM Narendra Modi has openly endorsed Indian-manufactured products and gave the slogan ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ (Self-Reliant India), many Indian shoppers have been ‘avoiding’ some Chinese products. Even companies like Apple are slowly planning to start their own manufacturing units in India in order to avoid the ongoing feud between India and China. 

In this backdrop, the business of some Chinese brands in India have largely been affected. In order to overcome this, a few Chinese brands are changing the ‘Made In India’ label to ‘Made in PRC’ label. Made in PRC means the product is manufactured in the People’s Republic of China, which is the official name of the country. Since many Indian shoppers have no awareness of ‘PRC’, they may end up buying the China manufactured products. 

While the change of the label could be minor, it is learnt that it has a telling impact on the business. Many electronic shop keepers admit that customers these days are “consciously checking” the labels but they are “unaware of the ‘Made in PRC’ label”. They say several known Chinese brands have now moved to the ‘Made in PRC’ tag and it is also reflecting in their sales numbers. Not just retail stores, but even several products being sold online on e-commerce giants such as Amazon, Flipkart have products with the ‘Made in PRC’ label. It is high time that the Union Government of India should spread awareness on the ‘Made in PRC’ label, say netizens.