I’ve been following a debate that was started recently on The Lingerie Post over a clear “copycat” garment featured in this story. We as a brand are obviously biased, but maybe not in the way you’d expect. I absolutely understand the inspiration and sharing of ideas that takes place between designers that starts trends and gets people shopping. Now there are cases where a design is a clear copy/knockoff and in some cases these copycat designs can be detrimental to the small firm with an inability to spread the word about their style and collections before a bigger faster fashion house, but in many cases the originator can use their unique lifestyle perspective and “signature look”, so that no one else can truly replicate their “brand aesthetic”. To keep it short you can duplicate a garment, but you can’t duplicate a brand. The real trick as a designer and entrepreneur is to find a way to market and create a brand that has a fingerprint that goes deeper than the clothing.
I came across this video a month or two ago and thought it was a great time to share.