Taiwan's Bi-Ang faked 'Made in USA' labels on skincare for 8 years — NT$1.3B in sales

Bi-Ang International was the Taiwan distributor of DERM iNSTITUTE (得英特), a US skincare brand. From 2009 the company imported the products from the United States and sold them to Taiwanese consumers. But around 2015, Bi-Ang stopped importing and instead commissioned Taiwanese biotech factories — including Hekang (和康) and TCI (大江生醫) — to manufacture the products locally. The company continued to use bottles and packaging printed with 'DERM iNSTITUTE' and 'Made in USA,' selling them at full import-brand prices.

The scheme lasted approximately eight years. By the time it was uncovered, Bi-Ang had sold tens of thousands of units with total sales exceeding NT$1.3 billion. The Taipei District Prosecutors Office raided the company in July 2023, seizing 17 cases of products. On May 15, 2026, prosecutors indicted former CEO Lin Yu-ting and sales manager Chen Xiao-zhen under Article 255 of the Criminal Code for false marking of goods. Lin denied the charges; Chen admitted that the company had stopped ordering from the US by 2015 or 2016 and asked the court for a lighter sentence.

The case exposed a vulnerability in the skincare distribution model: a brand that relies on a local distributor loses control over its supply chain, manufacturing, and quality claims. DERM iNSTITUTE's reputation in Taiwan was destroyed by actions its distributor took without the brand's knowledge.