Crafts are a way of life. It is a luxury to be able to make works that come from the soul with your own hands and that advance generation after generation.” These are the words of Jonatan Díaz, a passionate glass craftsman since he was 14 years old. He has a workshop located in the town of Estepona (Málaga) called Vitromar and, from there, he makes crystal glasses, kaleidoscopes and other products with great care. However, he is one of the many workers in the sector who faces plagiarism and false replicas of his artisanal creations. “I see companies from China that take designs from other artists' websites and make the same products with very low quality materials,” he says.
Forging an artisanal product is not an easy task. Craftsmanship is the art of making a product with your hands, although machines can also be used as long as manual work is the main component in the finishing of the work. It is common to see how this work is a victim of falsifications that impact both the sales of the workshops and the reputation and prestige of the artist himself. “Today it is very complex to detect a fake product because the techniques can be very easily replicated,” says Félix Sanz, vice president of the Organization of Artisans of Spain (OAE), who also points out that the souvenir market is the “most vulnerable niche to mass falsifications.”
Although crafts are a sector with a lot of piracy, artists have legal tools to defend themselves against counterfeiters. For example, they could try to identify themselves through a collective brand that helps distinguish their products or services from other companies. In this way, the customer could also recognize if it is an authentic artisan product. In the event that there was unfair competition in the market, says Manuela Mendigutía, an expert lawyer in intellectual property at Bird & Bird, the law would protect them “if this could be proven or if there were certain omissions that managed to confuse the consumer.” However, the problem is that not all workshops can afford to register their trademark. Mainly, due to the high prices it entails (up to 7,300 euros in Spain).
SMEs and family businesses are the most affected by the scourge of counterfeiting. It is very difficult for these businesses to protect their works because they do not have the necessary means to defend their products in the market against the replicas that can be found in some souvenir shops. As Karin Guridi, an expert lawyer in industrial property at Balder, points out, the most humble businesses are the most vulnerable to imitations because “many of the artisans lack the economic volume necessary to adequately protect their products, which influences their ability to sell.” action against counterfeits. A lack of resources that prevents the country's most traditional artistic products, such as ceramics from Talavera (Toledo), lace from Camariñas (A Coruña) or cutlery from Taramundi (Asturias), from not having the necessary shielding to put preserve imitations.
Last November, the European Council approved a regulation to protect artisanal items through designation of origin, as is the case with food and beverages. A regulation that will help stop fraud and unfair competition that harms many workshops. “This standard implies great support for the maintenance of small businesses and professionals in the sector, in addition to an enormous increase in added value for artisanal products,” says the vice president of OAE.
To have this geographical identity seal in Spain, as explained by the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (OEPM), three specific steps must be followed. First of all, the products must originate from a specific territory, region or country; secondly, they must have a characteristic that defines their geographical origin; and, finally, one of the production phases of the product must have taken place, at least, somewhere in the geographical area of the product to be protected.
The deadline for submitting applications will begin in December 2025 and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) will be in charge of evaluating the proposals from Member States to grant designation of origin to artisanal works. Furthermore, the institution states that it is a public service for which no fee will be charged, which will allow small artisans to have a legal protection tool that is more affordable to their means and prevent counterfeiting.
According to the European entity, 834 products have been identified that could benefit from this type of protection in the EU. Of these, some 229 would be Spanish products susceptible to obtaining the designation of origin, which includes a variety of traditional works, such as footwear from Menorca, lace from Zamora or swords and knives from Toledo.
The experts consulted agree that the arrival of this regulation is good news for the sector. Guridi believes that the protected geographical indication will make it possible to give greater visibility to artisanal creations “without having to make a significant financial outlay,” which will make it easier for artisans to defend themselves against counterfeits and, ultimately, increase competitiveness among them in the market.
World shielding
The designation of origin regulation that the European Council has implemented prevents third parties from imitating or plagiarizing an artisan product, although it has its limitations outside the EU Member States. In these cases, the shield of the works will depend on the territorial measures implemented in each country. At the global level, the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement is in force, which grants the international registration of geographical indications through the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Thanks to this designation of origin, artisanal products are protected internationally, as “in the case of Peru with Chulucanas ceramics,” says Manuela Mendigutía, lawyer at Bird & Bird.
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