As grade school students, we all learned that plagiarism is the ultimate “no-no”. Schools held assemblies to teach their students why they shouldn’t cheat, and high school teachers scared their students with an F should they catch anyone plagiarizing.
Plagiarism, it seems to me, should be something so ingrained in our minds as a negative action that always deals the worst of consequences.
This is why it is baffling to me to see rampant plagiarism in the fashion industry. It is even worse when I see this bad habit of brands and designers knocking each other off as one of the biggest reasons why the fashion industry generates so much waste.
I want to dedicate this post to discussing why our planet is the one suffering the consequences from plagiarism and how plagiarism actually diminishes the overall integrity of the industry as a whole.
The Roots of Plagiarism
Most of us associate the Instagram account Diet Prada as the originators of calling out brands for copying each other. The majority of their posts, however, consists of showcasing how different luxury fashion designers rip off ideas from other luxury fashion designers.
That is a whole other beast in and of itself. We’re here to talk about how fast fashion companies, “boutiques”, and e-commerce wholesalers CTRL + C on images from Vogue Runway and CTRL + V to their own design page.
Fashion, from the eyes of the greatest designers, is a personification and an evocation of their imagination. We remember designers like Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, and Gianni Versace for their timeless designs, boldness to venture into the unknown, and for their innate ability for storytelling.
When someone like Coco Chanel designs as timeless a piece like the Chanel 2.55, we gravitate towards those pieces because we, as a species, seek after the best of the best.
It is evolution and survival of the fittest in a modern-day era when we as people are so dictated by our outward appearance.
However, the problem with this type of human behavior is that not all of us can afford such a luxury. Yet, we crave for the best to “fit in” with our peers and to demonstrate our elevated social status. In a world when consumerism reigns, fast fashion has become the savior for those of us who cannot afford luxury goods.
Fast fashion profits through the affordability of their products to help us attain the look we so desire. They achieve affordability through polluting our planet, but they achieve attainability through plagiarism. Genuinely, I laugh at the idea of a “Creative Director” or “Design Director” at a company such as Forever 21 or H&M.
After all, how much creativity or design can really be involved with plagiarism?
Nothing you see on the racks of fast fashion clothing was derived from the creative process of their “designers”. Everything you gravitate towards when shopping at fast fashion retailers comes from the imagination and hard work of real designers whose passion is to follow in the footsteps of Coco Chanel.
The Worst Perpetrators of Plagiarism
The answer to who are the worst perpetrators of plagiarism may seem obvious: fast fashion retailers. However, I want to point out another huge category of individuals who are also perpetrators of this crime: e-commerce “boutiques”.
Lately, I have seen a large uptick in online boutiques that specialize in selling cute clothing solely through e-commerce. I have seen so many influencers promote these smaller boutiques that it is impossible for me to ever keep track of who is selling what… BECAUSE IT ALL LOOKS THE SAME.
To say a word in defense of boutiques and because I understand the appeal of boutique clothing, I genuinely love Vici Collection. I discovered them in my early days of venturing into the world of boutique clothing. When I realized there were so many boutiques out there, I stopped and decided to leave my boutique shopping solely through Vici.
However, with e-commerce being so easy and fast fashion being so prevalent, it is now easier than ever to start your own clothing brand through simplifying buying from wholesalers, taking cute pictures, and leveraging influencer marketing.
The problem I see with this is that most boutiques do not have their own private label.
It is not clothing that they are specially curating or designing. They are simply sourcing them from a wholesaler and putting together a catalog of clothes that they think is cute.
Where do these wholesalers get their beautiful, cute, fashion-forward designs from? THE REAL DESIGNERS!
In the end, regardless of whether the perpetrators of plagiarism are fast fashion retailers or wholesaler selling to boutiques, it is honestly so sad to me to see the design and creative process getting lost.
The real designers come up with clothing design as a result of their inspiration from the world around them, the people they interact with, and the world they want to create.
A Modern Day Example of How Plagiarism Occurs
To take the example of Miranda Priestly’s monologue in the Devil Wears Prada, cerulean blue was first featured in a collection by Oscar de la Renta (though this is not factually correct). It then got trickled down to Yves Saint Laurent doing cerulean blue military jackets (again, not factually correct) until cerulean blue became the color of choice on a sweater Andy (Anne Hathaway) decided to wear.
In modern day terms, there would be no trickling down effect of cerulean blue eventually becoming mass market. The second Oscar de la Renta or Yves Saint Laurnet designed with cerulean blue, it would be copied and put up online for e-commerce retail within 24 hours. That’s the sad part.
I commented, in a recent Instagram post, on the Kim Kardashian and Fashion Nova fiasco in which Kim wears a Mugler dress and was promptly ripped off by Fashion Nova. There were those that wondered whether Kim had a partnership with Fashion Nova, but Kim came out to firmly state that she is against plagiarism.
Regardless of whether or not Kim Kardashian works with Fashion Nova, my takeaway from the entire incident is that this wouldn’t even be an issue if it weren’t for the fact that we are so dictated by our need to look like the celebrities and influencers we see online. If we were not under the impression that we need all of the latest clothing in order to stay stylish, then this wouldn’t be an issue.
Plagiarism in the fashion industry is our fault as consumers.
Yes, I’ve said it, and I will say it again. Retailers and designers only succeed when we as consumers like what we see and continue to purchase it
Plagiarism in the fashion industry directly feeds from the consumerism need to have everything we see online for an affordable price that makes us think we can afford this ridiculously expensive and unnecessary piece of clothing.
As we get poorer from spending money on unnecessary clothing, the waste piles up and our planet pays the price. Plagiarism, when committed by fast fashion retailers, wholesalers, and boutiques, is so dangerous because it is feeding into the waste that the fashion industry is generating.
We don’t need to have all of the latest things to be stylish. It is actually also making us poorer because we are spending or money uselessly on items we throw away and get no value out of.
I also see influencers as the worst advocates for plagiarism. The promotion of knock offs by influencers are helping feed into the idea that we all need that designer look in order to be stylish.
If any influencers are reading this, then I BEG YOU TO PLEASE STOP PROMOTING KNOCKOFFS AND TO STOP PROMOTING PLAGIARISM.
In the end, our need for fast fashion perpetuates not only the planet getting polluted, but also perpetuates stealing other people’s hard work. We all need to be way more accountable, and I will be the first one to admit that I should be accountable as well.
I welcome any criticism into my wardrobe, my style, and my fashion because I know we can all do better, myself included. I just hope that by starting this conversation, we can all be a little bit more accountable and start saving our planet.
If you liked this post, check out my Beginner’s Guide to Sustainability!
