
A freelance fashion designer took on a global footwear company, and both lost - antr
http://qz.com/525536/a-freelance-fashion-designer-took-on-a-global-footwear-company-and-they-both-lost/
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jackgavigan
Some fashion designers are quite paranoid about their designs being copied by
bigger brands. I've been challenged by designers while doing reportage-style
photography of the exhibition at London Fashion Week, asking me who I was and
who I worked for. Apparently, mass-market fashion manufacturers and retailers
make use of the services provided by companies like WGSN to get "inspiration"
for their own ranges.

Examples include Primark allegedly copying Mary Katrantzou's designs -
[http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/news/how-
to-...](http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/news/how-to-look-good-
for-less-primark-in-copycat-row-6953019.html) \- and Nasty Gal copying
Alexander Wang - [http://fashionista.com/2015/05/nasty-gal-alexander-wang-
dres...](http://fashionista.com/2015/05/nasty-gal-alexander-wang-dress-copy)

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dublinben
Thankfully there is no broad copyright protection of fashion designs,
otherwise we might see numerous cases like this brought to court and bogging
down the industry.

It's unfortunate that this designer feels he was 'stolen' from, but his
designs are incredibly similar to older designs anyway.

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willtheperson
It's kind of awesome that you can't lock down a style under legal means. It
forces everyone to keep moving. It's probably also freeing to know that when
you design something, you aren't going to be ripped apart because you were
also inspired by some past design.

That said, it sucks for the designers who actually start the trend. What would
be cool is if you, as a designer, could register your design just for the
credit. That way, when the indie designer is looking for investment or a job,
they can definitively say "I was the one who ... "

Dribbble/Linked in for fashion designers :)

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mfoy_
>But his experience does contain one lesson for other designers: Even when
you’ve run out of other options, calling someone a “thief” in public may not
be the wisest option.

Good takeaway, I think. Resorting to public name calling is pretty petty.

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pcurve
both lost? I would argue both are winners in this case. The company isn't
exactly LV or Hermes of shoes. This type of publicity does more good than
harm. As for the designer, it looks like he has done ok for himself too. There
is no denying that he has a talent.

