Copycats In Fashion
365 days of fashion: the e-ncyclopedia of fashion
Saturday, February 3, 2024
The topic of copycats is prevailing in the fashion industry and today, we would like to discuss it with you.
Let’s start with a definition to clarify what a copycat is.
A copycat product - also called “a knockoff” is a copy of a fashion design that is manufactured in cheaper materials and sold at a lower price than the original and looks (almost) exactly like the authentic version. Basically, some brand took the idea of another brand to create a similar product.
Pay attention that a knockoff is not the same as fake designer clothes. The difference is that a knockoff piece will not have the real brand’s label on it, while counterfeit products deliberately feature the designer’s label even though they are not authentic.
Fast-fashion and low-segment brands are well-known for creating copycat/knockoff designs (but they are not the only ones; we will get to that later). The rise of fast fashion has indeed made high fashion and mid-range-looking designs more accessible than ever. They look similar but are not made using the same technique, materials, construction, etc. With the help of TikTok and Instagram, designs spread instantly online, so it has become more and more difficult to prevent copying.
The reason why we see so many knockoffs