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THE COST OF COPYING: COPYRIGHT VS COPYCATS FASHION’S KNOCK-OFF PROBLEM IS NOT NEW, BUT IT’S TAKING A TURN FOR THE WORSE. By Jennifer Hepler
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It’s no secret that the fashion industry is rife with copycats. One scroll through popular Instagram accounts like Diet Prada will show examples of big box brands, luxury designers, and popular influencers alike snagging style ideas from smaller creatives. Examples of designs being poached for profit sparks outrage on social media platforms and in the press, but this dark side of design is not unique to the 21st century, rather it has existed for hundreds of years. America’s apparel industry arguably was built upon US designers imitating the designs of European couturiers as early as the 1700s. So, if copying is almost as natural to fashion as creating, when does it become harmful and hinder creativity?
Large companies stealing from smaller designers is far more damaging than when established, high end designers are knocked off.
At the heart of the fashion industry’s copying problem lies the age old debate between what is legal and what is ethical. Copyright law does not protect the designs of items that serve a functional purpose such as clothes, shoes, or bags. Only specific logos and insignia can be protected. Outside of that, everything else is up for grabs. While copying may be legal, it is a far cry from ethical, yet it happens all the time. Historically, imitation in the industry was designer to designer, or large company to large company. However, nowadays social media enables large companies to go after the designs of individuals or emerging brands, not just established design houses. This shifts the power dynamic in the fashion industry for the worse. The fight between corporation and creative is not a fair one.
3. Established brands have the means to fight copyright issues.
Everytime a large, profitable brand or influencer mimics the work of a smaller designer, they not only sacrifice creativity, authenticity, and integrity but they also harm the designer they are stealing from. If a smaller brand’s newest design concept can be plagiarised by a fast fashion retailer and sold for half the price with no legal repercussions, how can designers feel safe to create? What’s the incentive? Graphics Christany Sendar
Here’s why: 1. Large designers’ core customer base will still pay for the “real thing” regardless of what knockoffs emerge. 2. Big brands have more name recognition, so when their designs are copied, many people will still know where the idea originated from
On the other hand, smaller creatives may not have gained widespread recognition for their work. When large companies steal their work, they are stealing more than a style or design, they are stealing their brand identity and means of growth in a competitive market. They are in a real sense stealing the brand’s future. It is ironic that it’s often the companies with the most resources who are the worst perpetrators of design theft. Retailing giants notorious for stealing design ideas should invest some of their revenue in their own creative abilities instead of investing time researching and leeching off work from others. Perhaps copying from large, recognized brands is too ingrained in fashion history and culture to be stopped, but stealing ideas from smaller, emerging brands has a true cost on the potential growth of not only that brand, but the fashion industry’s ability to create and innovate as a whole.
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