Pacific Mall counterfeit

Toronto mall ranked one of world's worst for counterfeit goods

The U.S. government has pegged a popular Toronto area shopping centre as one of the world's worst offenders when it comes to selling pirated and counterfeit goods.

Described as "the largest Chinese mall in the western world" with a "pervasive" counterfeit sales scene, it's the only Canadian establishment named in the office of the United States Trade Representative's annual Notorious Markets List.

Any guesses? Yeah, it's Pacific Mall in Markham.

"With over 270,000 square feet of retail space and more than 500 small shops, the sale of counterfeit goods at Pacific Mall in Ontario is sprawling," reads the report, noting it has been "a well-known market for the sale of counterfeit and pirate goods for over a decade."

"Vendors in Pacific Mall appear to operate largely with impunity, and requests for assistance from local law enforcement have reportedly gone unanswered," the report continues. 

"Many of the counterfeit goods including cosmetics, sunglasses, and fragrances pose a risk to public health and safety."

Pacific Mall was one of only 18 physical markets highlighted in this year's Notorious Markets report, alongside 25 online markets that are "reported to be engaging in and facilitating substantial copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting."

Other offenders in the physical category include two large markets in Mexico, two in Vietnam, one in Italy, one in India, and at least six in China.

Lead photo by

Hector Vasquez


Latest Videos



Latest Videos


Join the conversation Load comments

Latest in City

It will be 20 degrees in Ontario this weekend but don't celebrate winter's end yet

University of Toronto lands among Ivy League schools near top of world rankings

Doug Ford and Mark Carney have first meeting over breakfast at Toronto diner

These are all the places in Toronto you can get discounts with your PRESTO card

Latest Bank of Canada cut lowers interest rate to 2.75%

Canadians overwhelmingly oppose MPs getting hefty salary increase in April

TTC station is currently being reduced to rubble ahead of futuristic replacement

Ontario backs down on electricity surcharge after Trump threatens chaos

//