CASIO Middle East & Africa · Kenya
Counterfeit products continue to present one of the greatest commercial and reputational risks facing global brands operating across emerging markets. Beyond lost revenue, counterfeit goods undermine consumer confidence, weaken intellectual property rights, compromise product performance and expose customers to inferior-quality products.
For CASIO Middle East & Africa, protecting brand integrity within Kenya's education market had become increasingly important. Scientific calculators remain an essential learning tool for secondary school students, universities, engineering professionals and examination candidates. However, counterfeit calculators had become increasingly prevalent across informal retail channels, creating confusion among consumers and threatening the reputation built by one of the world's most trusted education technology brands.
Recognising that enforcement alone could not eliminate the challenge, CASIO sought a strategic communications partner capable of changing consumer behaviour through education, stakeholder engagement and strategic public awareness. Eminence Global Strategic Inc. was engaged to design and implement an integrated anti-counterfeit communications campaign that would strengthen public awareness, reinforce consumer confidence, support authorised retailers and position CASIO as the leading advocate for quality, authenticity and educational excellence.
Consumer Electronics | Education Technology | Intellectual Property Protection | Retail
Counterfeit products present a uniquely complex communications challenge. Unlike conventional marketing campaigns, anti-counterfeit initiatives require organisations to protect brand reputation while educating consumers without creating unnecessary alarm or inadvertently amplifying counterfeit operators.
The assignment demanded a careful balance between consumer education, media engagement, stakeholder collaboration and brand positioning. Operating during the highly competitive back-to-school purchasing period required communications that were timely, credible and capable of influencing purchasing decisions at scale.
The campaign also needed to reach multiple audiences simultaneously, including:
Eminence Global Strategic Inc. developed an integrated strategic programme built around 5 strategic pillars.
We repositioned the counterfeit conversation from a commercial issue to a national consumer protection and education issue. Rather than focusing solely on fake products, the campaign highlighted the importance of purchasing genuine calculators to protect students' learning outcomes, examination performance and long-term educational success. A comprehensive messaging framework was developed to ensure consistency across media engagement, stakeholder communications, consumer education materials and digital platforms.
Counterfeit activity presents significant reputational risks for globally recognised brands. Our advisory focused on protecting CASIO's reputation by proactively communicating the company's commitment to product quality, innovation, authenticity and consumer protection. Strategic messaging reinforced CASIO's leadership while ensuring that discussions surrounding counterfeit products strengthened — not weakened — public confidence in the brand.
Changing purchasing behaviour was central to the campaign. Rather than relying on promotional advertising, we developed educational communications that empowered consumers to make informed purchasing decisions. This educational approach positioned CASIO as a trusted advisor rather than simply a product manufacturer.
The campaign focused on helping consumers:
A comprehensive media relations programme was implemented to maximise national visibility and establish CASIO as the leading voice on counterfeit educational technology. Media engagement focused on generating meaningful public discussion around intellectual property protection, quality assurance and consumer rights while positioning CASIO as part of the solution.
The programme included:
Counterfeit trade affects an entire ecosystem of stakeholders. Our engagement strategy recognised the importance of collaborative relationships across government, education, retail and consumer protection institutions. By aligning corporate messaging with national consumer protection priorities, the campaign strengthened institutional credibility while reinforcing CASIO's commitment to Kenya's education sector.
Our strategic advisory included:
The campaign successfully strengthened CASIO's market leadership while reinforcing public awareness around counterfeit educational products. Key outcomes included:
The campaign demonstrated that protecting brand reputation extends far beyond responding to counterfeit activity. By integrating strategic communications, reputation advisory, media engagement, stakeholder collaboration and consumer education, Eminence Global Strategic Inc. helped transform a commercial challenge into an opportunity for brand leadership. Rather than allowing counterfeit products to define the narrative, CASIO led the national conversation around authenticity, quality, consumer protection and educational excellence. The engagement reinforced how strategic communications can protect market leadership while strengthening public trust and long-term brand equity.
Counterfeit trade remains one of the defining reputation challenges facing global brands across emerging markets. This engagement reinforced Eminence Global Strategic Inc.'s capability to advise multinational corporations operating in complex, high-risk commercial environments where brand protection, public trust, stakeholder engagement and strategic communications intersect. From reputation and risk advisory to consumer awareness, executive communications and corporate diplomacy, we help organisations protect what matters most — their credibility, influence and long-term market leadership.
"Eminence Global Strategic Inc. brought strategic insight, disciplined execution and a deep understanding of reputation management to our anti-counterfeit awareness campaign. Their ability to translate a complex brand protection challenge into a compelling public education initiative strengthened our engagement with consumers and reinforced confidence in the CASIO brand within the Kenyan market." — CASIO Middle East & Africa
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