A 25-year-old fashion blogger busted the 102-year-old house of Chanel.
When the blogger heard from two readers of her eight-month-old blog, the Fashion Law, last month saying a bracelet featured prominently in Chanel's recent Fall 2012 runway show seemed familiar, her antennae went up. She looked at the show images online. The bracelet in question was a Chanel branded piece that bore a striking resemblence to bracelets made by a small New York based jewelry designer, Pamela Love. She posted the item with side-by-side pictures.
Since the Fashion Law's following is small, the blogger alerted the much-larger Fashionista blog, which linked to her post on a Monday. By Tuesday, Chanel issued a statement to Fashionista saying it decided not to offer the bracelets in question for sale out of respect for the concerns raised.
It was a coup for the young blogger, a second-year law student at the Columbus School of Law at the Catholic University of America. She typically spends Friday afternoons in the cafe working on her blog when she isn't studying or at her part-time job doing research for the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet.
She is of a breed of fashion bloggers scouring the Internet and stores for instances of similarities or outright copying. Fashionista even has a series called "Adventures in Copyright" devoted to outing alleged copycats. Last month, retailer Topshop removed a dress that looked similar to one by a young British designer, after the founder of the Style Bubble blog, lambasted the British fast-fashion retailer for "aping" the designer in a series of tweets.
Copyright is a contentious area in fashion, according to New York Copyright Lawyers. While trademarks such as Tiffany's signature blue box are protected by copyright, fashion designs in the U.S. aren't. Christian Louboutin and Yves Saint Laurent are embroiled in a lawsuit filed by the shoe brand over YSL's use of red soles in shoes in its resort 2011 collection. Christian Louboutin's red sole is trademarked. YSL has said a designer should not be allowed to "monopolize a color." The case is currently in an appeals court. The Council of Fashion Designers of America has been pushing for the U.S. Congress to pass legislation that offers copyright protection for designs.
Armed with her Apple MacBook Pro and often fueled by several strong cappuccinos, the young blogger brought her followers up to speed on Louis Vuitton winning a nearly two-year-old counterfeiting lawsuit. On a recent Friday, she downloaded court documents on a case in which Gucci has accused the Guess brand of copying Gucci's G logo and stripes for Guess sneakers. She likes to include fashion posts that have nothing to do with legal issues, too. You don't have to be a lawyer to understand the business and legal posts.
Brands haven't contacted her to write about potential knockoffs. She doesn't accept gifts from labels or retailers. Her reasons for highlighting alleged copying are to educate about fashion law and give credit where credit is due.
She was inspired to start the Fashion Law blog after attending a two-week "boot camp"-style class at the Fashion Law Institute at Fordham Law School last summer. She decided to make fashion law her career after enjoying the course. She cites the institute's academic director who has her own blog called Counterfeit Chic, as a role model and inspiration. She adds that these blogs can create social pressure on copyists not to do so.
The Fashion Law blog even calls out what it sees as copying by fast-fashion retailers, stores where much of the inventory quickly mimics runway looks at bargain prices. Primark, a U.K.-based retailer, was accused of copying the floral patterns and silhouettes from designer Prabal Gurung's resort 2012 collection. A Primark spokeswoman said in an email it would continue to sell the clothing and that Primark disputes the accusation of copyright by the Fashion Law blog as this floral design is an on trend seasonal look seen across the high street this Spring Summer.
For more law related news, visit the Nation of Law blog.
For national and worldwide related business news, visit the Peak News Room blog.
For local and Michigan business related news, visit the Michigan Business News blog.
For healthcare and medical related news, visit the Healthcare and Medical blog.
For real estate and home related news, visit the Commercial and Residential Real Estate blog.
For technology and electronics related news, visit the Electronics America blog.
For organic SEO and web optimization related news, visit the SEO Done Right blog.
No comments:
Post a Comment