Chinese brand Uncle Martian is a blatant rip-off of Under Armour
No, you're not seeing things. China's newest sportswear brand, Uncle Martian, is a bold rip-off of American brand Under Armour.
The brand was announced this week, and its Weibo account just set up on Friday morning.
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The company behind Uncle Martian is a 25-year-old sports shoe manufacturer, Tingfei Long Sporting Goods Co. (廷飞龙体育用品有限公司). According to its government records, it has some 800 employees and is based in southern China's Fujian province.
It appears to have been making its own off-brand sports shoes for the domestic market for years, but its Uncle Martian plans point to an aspiration to target the higher end market.
Tingfei Long's general manager, Huang Canlong, gave an interview to a local paper a week before Uncle Martian's launch, in which he said the company would like a slice of the branded shoe market that U.S. firms like New Balance and Under Armour have a hold over in China.
Netizens on Weibo are tweeting about the brand's likeness to Under Armour, and many are slamming Uncle Martian for its lack of creativity. Some said it should expect a copyright infringement suit from the American firm real soon.
Premium-priced sportswear is in vogue among China's wealthy, and is regarded as trendy in the country.
This demand has spilled over into prestigious gym memberships and nutrition brands, as well.
Under Armour launched in China in 2010, and had over 75 stores by end-2015, according to Bloomberg.
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Victoria Ho is Mashable's Asia Editor, based in Singapore. She previously reported on news and tech at The Business Times, TechCrunch and ZDNet. When she isn't writing, she's making music with her band
