While biking is a recreational activity in the States, it represents a major mode of transportation in China. There are dozens of bicycle brands available for purchase in our city, ranging from Great to Bester to Best:
The strongest brand name is “Giant.” Although I haven’t taken photos of all the copycats I’ve seen, here are a few. The way that I see it, if someone marketed a knockoff of a famous Chinese brand and changed a few strokes in the Chinese characters, I probably wouldn’t know the difference either.
Although many of the consumers might not know the difference between a true Giant and a fake one, it sounds like the bike thieves know a real one when they see it. I’ve heard that the genuine article has a tendency to disappear rather quickly…
The Gitane might be a fake Gitane, not a fake Giant. Those aging “roadies” among us well remember the popularity of the french racing bikes with that name. http://gitaneusa.com/history.asp
Interesting thought Eric. While it’s hard to believe that anyone here would recognize a French racing bike, there is an outside chance. Speaking of old French racing bikes, I’m still looking to sell my 1972 Jeunet Franche Comte (maybe I should bring it back to China on the next trip…)
It seems the spirit of competition is lacking in all the copycats. And the poor translations, even though I am not proficient in English, it seems someone might attempt a better translation. Even though the poor ones are very humorous.