So far, the existing Copyrights, Patent and Trademark Act allowed only the manufacturing entities to register trademark for their productions and was silent on common mark registration by a group or the business association. [break]
This had hindered Nepal Pashmina Manufacturers´ Association (NPMA) that established the international identity of Nepali pashmina by registering trademark in major importing countries from getting the same trademark registered in the country itself.
Ministry of Industry, after the long push by the entrepreneurs, corrected the situation enforcing the new directives on copyrights, patent and trademark last week.
“We will soon get the Chyangra Pashmina, our logo and trademark, registered with the government. This will certify that the pashmina is typical production of Nepal,” said Madhu Babu Adhikari, NPMA official.
The association has so far registered the trademark with three dozen countries including the EU countries, Japan, Australia, Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong and USA, among others. It is also on the verge of receiving trademark certification from New Zealand and Thailand, Brazil, Russia, Taiwan, South Africa and UAE.
The registration has established pashmina, a Nepali name for the finest fur extract of mountain goats, as a typical Nepali product and defined pashmina items as commodities that have well-defined material content and traits.
This has secured Nepali manufacturers´ intellectual property rights over pashmina and closed room for rival exporters from marketing their products as Nepali pashmina in those countries.
As the trademark is associated with typical standard specifications, manufacturers said no substandard products can now be tagged as pashmina. “This will safeguard our brand image in the international market,” said Adhikari.
Pashmina is a prime Nepali commodity that had carved out a niche market among posh consumers around the world in late 1990s. Mainly the products had gained sudden acclaim in the international market after fashion magazines associated the product with high-profile personalities, including the UK´s royalties.
That boosted pashmina´s exports to over Rs 7 billion in 2000 and expanded its market to as many as 75 countries.
However, failure of domestic manufacturers to maintain its quality and aggressive marketing of cashmere products as pashmina by India and China soon started to displace Nepali exports. By 2008/09, its exports had plummeted to less than half a billion rupees.
Furthermore, because Indian and Chinese manufacturers heavily used viscose yarn, acrylic wool, soybean fiber and poly-yarn in their “pashmina” products, that ultimately dented the image of actual Nepali pashmina.
With the trademark, manufacturers believe that they will be able to reclaim the lost glory and market of pashmina substantially. The US, EU and Japan are the three largest markets of Nepali pashmina.
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