To Protect 'Khadi' Brand Globally, India Files Trademark Registrations in 40 Countries

KVIC Secures Trademark Registrations in Bhutan, UAE & Mexico

Files Applications in 40 Countries to Protect Brand “Khadi”

Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has recently secured trademark registrations in three countries – Bhutan, UAE and Mexico – a big stride towards protecting the identity of brand “Khadi” globally. KVIC is a statutory body formed in April 1957 by the Government of India and is under the ownership of Ministry of MSME.

Apart from these 3 countries, KVIC’s trademark applications are pending in 40 countries across the world that include the USA, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Japan, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Brazil and others.

While KVIC obtained the latest trademark registration in Bhutan on 9th July; trademark registration was granted in UAE on 28th June. With this, KVIC has succeeded in securing trademark registration for the first time in a Gulf country. Earlier, KVIC got the trademark registration for “Khadi” in Mexico in December 2020.

So far KVIC was having Trademark registrations for the word mark “KHADI” in 6 countries namely Germany, UK, Australia, Russia, China and EU where trademark registrations were granted in certain classes. However, with recent trademark registrations in Bhutan, UAE and Mexico, the number of such countries has gone up to nine. In these countries, KVIC has got registrations in various classes that pertain to Khadi fabric, Khadi readymade garments and village industry products like Khadi soaps, Khadi cosmetics, Khadi incense sticks among others.

It is for the first time in the history of KVIC that sustained efforts have been made in the last 5 years to protect the brand "Khadi" which was given to us by none other than Mahatma Gandhi.

Earlier this year, KVIC launched Khadi India’s official e-Commerce website having over 50,000 products under more than 500 varieties and various categories of locally made Khadi and Village Industries products.

KVIC Chairman Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena said these trademark registrations will prevent any misuse of the brand name 'Khadi' globally. He said in recent years, Khadi’s popularity has seen a massive growth in India and abroad due to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s appeal to adopt Khadi. It has, therefore, become very important for KVIC to protect the identity of Khadi and safeguard the interest of consumers and lakhs of Khadi artisans who are manufacturing genuine Khadi products.

The development assumes great significance as there have been instances of some private local entities in countries like Mexico and Germany seeking trademark registration for brand name “Khadi” in their respective countries. In Mexico, KVIC challenged the trademark application of “One Foundation Oaxaca Ac” which had applied for the 'Khadi' logo. However, the firm did not challenge KVIC’s objections and trademark registration for the word '/Khadi' and 'Khadi' logo was granted in favour of KVIC.

Similarly, in Germany, KVIC challenged a local company - Best Natural Products GmbH ("BNP"), which in 2011 already got prior rights in the mark “KHADI” and related marks in EU and other countries in different classes. After long legal battle and negotiations through the Diplomatic channel with the help of the Ministry of External Affairs, BNP has expressed its willingness to settle the trademark disputes amicably with KVIC.

Last year in September, KVIC mandated e-commerce firms like Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal and others to remove over 160 web links selling products in the brand name of “Khadi”. KVIC served legal notices to over 1000 firms using the brand name “Khadi India” to sell their products and thus causing damage to its reputation and the loss of work to Khadi artisans.

In A First, Khadi India’s Official E-Commerce Portal Launched

The E-commerce Platform becomes another symbol of Ministry’s process re-engineering; this time through e-marketing;

Ministry’s khadi arm- Khadi & Village Industries Commission (KVIC) launches E-commerce Portal: ekhadiindia.com

It is the first ever effort of the Ministry & KVIC in online & B2C outreach;

Necessitated by covid resultant restrictions on physical exhibition & marketing; KVIC steps up online sales & e-marketing;

It is a firm step towards Prime Minister’s ‘vocal for local’ call;

In addition to domestic market, the portal will help Indian local products & producers reach the global markets.

On New Year’s eve, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) unveils Khadi India’s official e-Commerce site eKhadiIndia.com. The website catalogues over 50,000 products under more than 500 varieties and various categories of locally made Khadi and Village Industries products. The portal is a step towards building an ecosystem that enables MSMEs to help achieve the Prime Minister’s goal of “Aatmanirbhar Bharat”.

During the trial launch of the portal, Secretary, MSME Shri A.K. Sharma mentioned that the interest of our weavers, artisans, craftsmen and farmers has always been our top priority. At the same time, ecofriendly and authentic Khadi & traditional village industry products made by them have always remained close to the heart of people of India. Now, those products are just a click away. Portal will fulfill the customer’s needs and supply the products at their door steps. For last few months, we have been pushing all limits to create an ecosystem for withstanding the challenges of Covid. The ecommerce portal of KVIC is the result of our persistent work in that direction.

KVIC Chairman Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena during the launch function informed that ekhadiindia.com is the first of its kind government online shopping platform to boost rural economy and become self-sustainable. There has been a steady rise in demands for Khadi and Village Industries products over the last few years with 2018-2019 alone witnessing the surge of 25%. Chairman KVIC added that this move is mainly intended to make natural Khadi India products easily accessible to the new generation consumers.

The products range from apparel, grocery, cosmetics, home décor, health and wellness products, essentials and gifts. Cashing on the growing shift towards natural products, especially by the new generation consumers, KVIC is up for giving it all for repositioning India's legendary brand Khadi. The portal is also an answer to the call of youth demographics who prefer online shopping over offline shopping.

The Key Components of ekhadiindia.com that sets it apart from other online ecommerce platforms:-

• Exclusively focuses on Khadi and Villages Industries products.
• Authentic Khadi Trade Mark products will be available only through this portal.
• It’s built on an ecosystem where any SME/Artisans/ Weavers can directly sell their products thus driving the country towards digital India and “Aatmanirbhar Bharat”.
• The ekhadiindia.com website is at par with any other modern technology rich ecommerce portal.
• Portal has also features of bulk orders and direct sellers registration.
• A huge platform for all the stake holders in integration with KVIC/KVIB/PMEGP/ SFURTI/ MSME/ Entrepreneurs and support to new MSMEs/PMEGP Units under the umbrella of KVIC. Here Institutions/ Units can directly sell/ship products to the customers.
• Customer care facility; all refund policy.
• More than 50,000 users can use the Portal at the same time.
• Social media compatibility.
• Available in both website and mobile app versions.
• Digitized Payment ecosystem.
• Has pan India reach across 1.2Bn+ Population of 2400+ Cities /Towns 25600 from 29 States Last Mile Delivery.
• Launched with a wide range of 1500+ Products across various consumer verticals.

KVIC is one of the biggest employment providers in the country and which is bringing to life Prime Minister's vision of Digital India through its various innovations. KVIC envisages to emerge as a new age digital marketplace for weavers, artisans, craftsmen, farmers and micro/ small entrepreneurs of India with the Khadi and Village Industries.

Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal to Remove 160 Fake Khadi Products Online

Khadi and Village Industries Commission’s (KVIC) firmness has forced e-commerce portals like Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal and others to remove over 160 web links selling products in the brand name of “Khadi”. In a statement today, KVIC has said that the development comes in wake of KVIC serving legal notices to over 1000 firms using the brand name “Khadi India” to sell their products and thus causing damage to its reputation and the loss of work to Khadi artisans.

It further said that after KVIC served legal notice, Khadi Global has also discontinued using its website www.khadiglobalstore.com and also removed its social media pages on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and have sought 10-day time to remove all such contents and product using the brand name “Khadi”. KVIC action has also resulted in shutting down a number of stores across the country that were selling fake Khadi products.

These e-commerce portals were selling products like Khadi masks, herbals soaps, shampoos, cosmetics, herbal mehandi, jackets, kurta and many such products through different sellers using the brand name “Khadi”. This created a false impression among online buyers that these commodities were genuine “Khadi” products. KVIC also stated that a majority of the products that have been removed were being sold by one Ayush E-Traders. This firm has confirmed to KVIC that it has removed 140 links for various products that were being sold as “Vagad’s Khadi Products”.

It further stated that there has been a steep rise in violation of Khadi trademark as the popularity of Khadi grew manifold in recent years after the Prime Minister’s appeal to buy Khadi products. Exploiting this opportunity, a number of online sellers began selling random products in the name of Khadi. Also hundreds of stores mushroomed in different cities that were selling fake Khadi products. 

In recent months, particularly during the Covid-19 lockdown, there was a huge proliferation of such fraudulent online sellers. However, to enable online customers to buy genuine Khadi products, KVIC has launched its e-portal selling a range of 300 products online at www.kviconline.gov.in/khadimask.
KVIC Chairman Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena said the KVIC has given violators the option of either stop selling products in the name of Khadi or legal action will be initiated for recovery of heavy damages. “Legal notices have been issued to various firms essentially to safeguard the interest of Khadi artisans. This trademark violation has a direct bearing on the livelihood of our artisans who are making genuine handcrafted products,” Saxena said.

KVIC has put in place a robust online enforcement plan for effective monitoring of “Khadi India” trademark rights. It has employed a dedicated legal team, a mix of human and technological tools to ensure a systematic and continuous monitoring and takedown of unauthorised products being sold in the name of Khadi.

KVIC is also educating all registered Khadi Institutions engaged in manufacturing Khadi products that simply their registration with KVIC did not authorize them to re-authorize any one to use “Khadi” trademarks or “Khadi India” logo unless that firm or company obtains proper licence from KVIC for the same.

Last month, KVIC had issued legal notices to two firms Khadi Essentials and Khadi Global for unauthorizedly selling cosmetics and other products in the name of Khadi. The statement added that KVIC has also sought damages to the tune of Rs 500 crore from Fabindia which is pending before the Mumbai High Court.

UP Govt Signs MoU With Amazon To Enable Rural Artisans Directly Sell Khadi Products Online

To promote khadi and re-skill the state's artisans in modern designs and technologies, Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh state government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Amazon India to facilitate online selling of Khadi products manufactured in the state across the country.

As part of an MoU, Amazon India will educate, train and enable rural khadi artisans to directly sell their products to Amazon.in customers across the country under the brand of 'UP Khadi'.

The online portfolio of 'UP Khadi' will include products such as khadi shirts, kurtas, dhotis, towels and gourmet food which has a tremendous potential and demand in urban areas.

Meanwhile, UP khadi & village industries principal secretary Navneet Sehgal noted the tie-up with Amazon offered a big platform to state khadi products and would benefit khadi manufacturing units and artisans.

“The MoU would fetch remunerative returns to these units and do away with middlemen,” he added. So far, 7 UP khadi organisations are onboard and 40 are in the pipeline.

Additionally, the state is also considering creating a comprehensive database/repository comprising a gamut of food and non-food products of the state. The government is seeking private investment in the khadi space, apart from ensuring that resources and infrastructure were optimally utilised.

The above development was first reported in Business Standard.

Through this partnership, Amazon India and Uttar Pradesh Khadi & Village Industries Board intend to empower and generate livelihood opportunities and income for the rural artisans and boost the economy of the Khadi and Village industry.

By bolstering digital connectivity of the artisans community, this collaboration will help them be a part of and benefit from India’s booming digital economy. With the option of selling products online, rural artisans will be able to expand their reach, fetch an appropriate price for their unique products, which in-turn will help raise their overall standard of living.

Recently, the state government has also massively hiked the fund allocation for startups in the state from Rs 5 crore to Rs 250 crore.

Last month, the state Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced that the state government will link 60,000 villages of the state with the Start-up India programme.

UP Govt Signs MoU With Amazon To Enable Rural Artisans Directly Sell Khadi Products Online

To promote khadi and re-skill the state's artisans in modern designs and technologies, Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh state government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Amazon India to facilitate online selling of Khadi products manufactured in the state across the country.

As part of an MoU, Amazon India will educate, train and enable rural khadi artisans to directly sell their products to Amazon.in customers across the country under the brand of 'UP Khadi'.

The online portfolio of 'UP Khadi' will include products such as khadi shirts, kurtas, dhotis, towels and gourmet food which has a tremendous potential and demand in urban areas.

Meanwhile, UP khadi & village industries principal secretary Navneet Sehgal noted the tie-up with Amazon offered a big platform to state khadi products and would benefit khadi manufacturing units and artisans.

“The MoU would fetch remunerative returns to these units and do away with middlemen,” he added. So far, 7 UP khadi organisations are onboard and 40 are in the pipeline.

Additionally, the state is also considering creating a comprehensive database/repository comprising a gamut of food and non-food products of the state. The government is seeking private investment in the khadi space, apart from ensuring that resources and infrastructure were optimally utilised.

The above development was first reported in Business Standard.

Through this partnership, Amazon India and Uttar Pradesh Khadi & Village Industries Board intend to empower and generate livelihood opportunities and income for the rural artisans and boost the economy of the Khadi and Village industry.

By bolstering digital connectivity of the artisans community, this collaboration will help them be a part of and benefit from India’s booming digital economy. With the option of selling products online, rural artisans will be able to expand their reach, fetch an appropriate price for their unique products, which in-turn will help raise their overall standard of living.

Recently, the state government has also massively hiked the fund allocation for startups in the state from Rs 5 crore to Rs 250 crore.

Last month, the state Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced that the state government will link 60,000 villages of the state with the Start-up India programme.