This TED Talk features brand protection manager Alistair Gray, recorded live at TED-at-Tami 2017.

Two years ago, I set off from central London on the tube and ended up somewhere in the east of the city,

walking into a self-storage unit to meet a guy that had 2,000 luxury polo shirts for sale. And as I made my way down

the corridor, a broken blinking light made it just like the cliche scene from a gangster movie.

Our man was early, and he was waiting for me in front of a unit secured with four padlocks down

the side. On our opening exchange, it was like a verbal sparring match where he threw

all the first punches. Who was I? Did I have a business card? And where was I going to sell? And then,

he just started opening up. And it was my turn. Where were the polo shirts coming from? What paperwork

did he have? And when was his next shipment going to arrive?

I was treading the fine line between asking enough questions to get what I needed

and not enough for him to become suspicious. Because what he didn't know is that I'm a counterfeit

investigator. And after 20 minutes or so of checking over the product for the tell-tale signs of counterfeit production,

say badly stitched labels or how the packaging had a huge brand logo stamped all over the front of it,

I was finally on my way out.

But not before he insisted on walking down to the street with me and back to the station.

And the feeling after these meetings is always the same.

My heart is beating like a drum,

because you never know if they've actually brought your story,

or they're going to start following you to see who you really are.

Relief only comes when you turn the first corner and glance behind,

and they're not standing there.

But what I counterfeit polo shirts, I really didn't realize,

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