Sat 2008/03/22 08:45
Making products that look like other brands happens in Japan too. This product is for chapped lips (the lips on ones face). The one on top is "Mentholatum" and the one below is "Menturm" and costs about three times less than Mentholatum. Menturm is the copy product but does its job exactly the same as Mentholatum. Which would you buy?
Posted on Sat 2008/03/22 08:45 by
Working in a supermarket T0T
Lol, i would probarbly take both, and if the cheap one is as good i'd get the cheap one.
(ID #159730) Posted on 2008/03/22 08:52
I agree. If it has the same ingredients and concentrations, why pay more? If you go to Walgreens out here (local drug stores)they have copy cat brands of everything. Like instead of benadryll, they have Wal-dryll, or Wal-lenol (tylenol).. Nothing wrong with that. Its competitive and keeps the market alive so there isnt a monopoly. Kind of like Coke and Pepsi..... and Tab.
(ID #159747) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:18
@DRAGUN: LOL!!! WAL-LENOL XDDD i agree though i do the same thing always buyin copycat brands nothing wrong with it
(ID #159824) Posted on 2008/03/22 12:26
PhysicsMajor/Someting/Photo/Pharm Tech
Wal-zac and good old wal-dryl. ヲアグリンス。I have a spot for them. Walgreens. How many WAG people are here? Just kidding. 1 here
(ID #160786) Posted on 2008/03/24 14:02
I agree too. If both brands work fine, then I'd probably opt for the cheaper one next time.
(ID #159943) Posted on 2008/03/22 17:59
Student
the menturm, since im on a tight budget
(ID #159732) Posted on 2008/03/22 08:52
i'd go for the stylish gloss in the background XD
(ID #159734) Posted on 2008/03/22 08:54
Wow. Okay. I dont think this post was about cross dressing... lol.
(ID #159745) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:16
lol, i was kidding. i only use chapstick anyway
(ID #159746) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:18
I would buy the Mentholatum. They have more of the girl logo on their packaging... I am soooo weak!
(ID #159736) Posted on 2008/03/22 08:57
I'd probably buy neither of them. ^^ If you use too much of these you will get chapped lips faster as the body stops it's own countermeasures to heal them.
(ID #159748) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:24
That said, I'm a cheapskate therefore I'd usually buy the cheaper product unless it's a considerably worse product. I don't care about brands (except if it's figurines ^^).
(ID #159749) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:29
China has a larger selection, variety and price ranges. It might even have the same name, just different components. I only buy blistex or nivea ;D
(ID #159751) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:29
when i lived in Brazil I've seen Durabel Duradell Durazel ... probably 10 different knock off of Duracell
(ID #159757) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:40
yeah man u r right i used to live in Brazil too & it was sooo funny cuz i saw once a toothpaste called CUELGATE (instead of the COLGATE brand) hahaha in spanish means HANG YOURSELF
(ID #159826) Posted on 2008/03/22 12:30
So, there's a product for the other chapped lips? Pls elaborate
(ID #159758) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:40
Yikes! If the lady business is getting chapped something needs to be done to fix that.
(ID #159803) Posted on 2008/03/22 11:19
not buying any... use other brand...
(ID #159759) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:41
Afro-ed Student
not buying any... coz not gonna use...
(ID #159771) Posted on 2008/03/22 10:20
ひきこもり/Hikikomori. Suits my current state more than a 大学生/University Student. ^^
not buying any.. never medicate chapped lips before..
(ID #159870) Posted on 2008/03/22 14:11
yes true enuf, we dont need lip balm in malaysia, its humid enuf here to make our armpits smell like dried sotong
(ID #159920) Posted on 2008/03/22 16:25
ひきこもり/Hikikomori. Suits my current state more than a 大学生/University Student. ^^
Uh, I mean, I actually did get chapped lips very occasionally but I didn't bother to medicate it. ^^ But you're right about the humidity. I seemed to get chapped lips more often when I experienced my first spring, fall and winter in Sydney >_< Summer had no lack in humidity though. ^^
(ID #159924) Posted on 2008/03/22 16:42
Student, Spiral Warrior
I like the wing-headed girl on the Menturm, and if it's cheaper and does the trick, well, that's that.
(ID #159762) Posted on 2008/03/22 09:47
Menturm I would chose cause i am cheap We have to many knock offs in America
(ID #159768) Posted on 2008/03/22 10:07
Chef, Full fledged Otaku, Full time Observer.....
i would go for the cheaper one... why go for the more expensive one when the cheaper one does the exact same job*plus its 3x cheaper*... no point wasting excess money when those excess money can be saved to buy figures...
(ID #159770) Posted on 2008/03/22 10:18
Mentholatum, eh? I remembered using this ointment brand for headaches, stuffed nose and ummm... aerophagia (I'm serious, on that, really!). Works as well as Balm Tiger (the latter which has been copied many times as well). I'm rather surprised they have entered the domain of chapsticks... I'd remain with the original I guess, even if I don't use chapsticks at all. (On a relatively related note, for food I most always go for the generic brand, while for medication... I almost never go for auto-medication; I prefer to let my immune system function fully when I suffer from a migraine or cold).
(ID #159774) Posted on 2008/03/22 10:28
Upstair ...addicted to anything related to chibi
I prefer the cheap brand if it a good quality and do the same job....except for coke...never buy other fake brand ...cus it don't taste right....
(ID #159781) Posted on 2008/03/22 10:37
the best way to avoid using these is to live in the particular region until your body gets used to the climate
(ID #159782) Posted on 2008/03/22 10:38
Burt's Bees Wax is all I use, it has a lovely peppermint taste. Specially good for smoochin.
(ID #159805) Posted on 2008/03/22 11:22
computer business Infomation system
If a copy cat brand has the same effectiveness then I guess I'll go with the cheap one.
(ID #159831) Posted on 2008/03/22 12:40
Part human, part student, 100% loser
Same here!
(ID #159844) Posted on 2008/03/22 13:15
Leisure Consultant, Writer, Webmaster
There must be a million of those hand warmers that look exactly the same. I can't tell them apart....
(ID #159847) Posted on 2008/03/22 13:30
anime/cosplay events organizer
copycat products are also common here and there are some who have the galls to really copy the original product down to the logo and the name
(ID #159849) Posted on 2008/03/22 13:42
ひきこもり/Hikikomori. Suits my current state more than a 大学生/University Student. ^^
China'll never walk alone. ^^
(ID #159873) Posted on 2008/03/22 14:13
How are japanese regulations on stuff like that? I'm guessing it's ok, no? But on another subject... sometimes I think Danny is running on a parallel world. No kidding here: When I was in Japan couple of years ago, one of the first things I bought was... Menturm. Our trip was around this time of the year. Not only that, but I also faced that same exact question: The quickmart we went had both brands. I don't read japanese (only know a few spoken words)... so I didn't understand why the price was so different. But we didn't need nothing fancy, so I got the cheaper one. And it worked just fine...
(ID #159882) Posted on 2008/03/22 14:35
You mean patents, research and government approval?
(ID #159895) Posted on 2008/03/22 15:14
オタク by moonlight, Graphic Designer by daylight
LOL, I thought it only happens in China or Taiwan. XD
(ID #159887) Posted on 2008/03/22 14:54
Secondary Student~
Japan is revenging its vengeance?
(ID #159922) Posted on 2008/03/22 16:30
Get a few friends/suckers and double-blind-test Mentholatum and Menturm against placebo. If either do significantly better then select that brand for own usage, otherwise don't bother. Science, people. It works.
(ID #159942) Posted on 2008/03/22 17:54
the factory that produces the product sells the product to another company, thus the branding is different? happens a lot in case of blank CD or other computer peripherals.
(ID #159953) Posted on 2008/03/22 19:03
Online Shop
I prefer to use the original brands only if they don't cost way too much. If only a buck or two difference in price, I would use name brands over copy product.
(ID #159962) Posted on 2008/03/22 19:44
I bought the original. It isn't really expensive in the first place so why not get the original one? You may never know what the fake one has inside it, with the possibilty that it might be contaminated?
(ID #159973) Posted on 2008/03/22 20:01
radical anime fan in Singapore; starting to freeze up. Mmm, end-of-year weather. (Registered on 2007/01/25 21:20)
Polytechnic Freshman. Mmm... fresh.
Definitely gonna go for the cheaper item. It's one thing to copy a brand and sell it at a lower price BUT is defective, than to copy a brand, sell it at a lower price AND works just as well as the original. Then the original company will catch on and attempt to increase sales through various methods, thus injecting in competition to make sure the company doesn't get too complacent.
(ID #159993) Posted on 2008/03/22 21:33
On my first trip in 2005 I got dry lips & bought the "expensive" mentholatum. Best purchse of my visit. In fact I have Just got whats left of it out of my work bag to check the brand ^_^
(ID #160046) Posted on 2008/03/23 01:15
Knowing theres no diffrence between their effects, I would buy the copy product.
(ID #160086) Posted on 2008/03/23 03:40
heh i might probably buy both and try em out. might be a copy but you'll never know if the copy's good or not...
(ID #160092) Posted on 2008/03/23 04:15
Musician, Sound Engineer, Student - Currently Military (2yrs)
Singapore is so humid that your lips will feel wet even if you use a hairdryer to it. I'd buy mentholatum because i know the brand and trust it - I also suspect that Mentrum stole the patent and might not be paying "royalties" to the patent owner, just like all those China brands that sell mp3 players at US$50-100 that look and function the same as ipods and other mp3 players. Supporting pirate companies will only increase poverty everywhere around the world =(
(ID #160111) Posted on 2008/03/23 06:32
Since it's chap stick...I wouldn't really care which I bought. Although, I would probably buy the brand name...just because I'm not very informed and have little interest in chap stick (think I bought maybe one or two chap sticks in my life). Buying brand names products generally means quality assurance.
(ID #160114) Posted on 2008/03/23 08:08
The cheaper one, so I can have more money over for my figures.
(ID #160120) Posted on 2008/03/23 08:17
littledoll (Registered on 2008/03/21 01:48)
I would buy the knock-off version if it has the same ingredients and does the same job. Sometimes the knockoff stuff doesn't work as well, but sometimes it's exactly the same and in that case I will go cheap. ^^
(ID #160152) Posted on 2008/03/23 08:45
Sterilization Technician@ Prince Of Wales Hospital
i remember the sports drinks in Australia Gatorade Powerade Staminade Sportsade hahahahha
(ID #160542) Posted on 2008/03/23 23:47
Yeah it's fine if it has enough quality. Quality as in not Q-joy
(ID #161723) Posted on 2008/03/26 12:43
Grocery Store Clerk
Everyone makes copy brands. I see it all the time in retail.
(ID #315757) Posted on 2008/09/28 09:33
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