Fake it till you make it?
LET’S say you have a successful business, and you discover that a new startup company has ripped off your brand image, with only a few tweaks hereandthere. Willyoubeflattered or does that get you all riled up? When a business venture becomes successful, it naturally breeds copycats. I’m no entrepreneur but I’ve always supported the notion of innovation. Be different. Be your own brand.
The reality is that copycats are everywhere. In the world of beauty, you see knock-off products practically everywhere.
How many Kylie Lip Kits have you spotted being sold at small kiosks in KL?
Not to mention the variety of cheap Huda Beauty products and Morphe brushes that sit on the shelves.
The thing is these brands can only be bought through online purchases (if you live in Malaysia).
The buzz over fake make-up products is not something new. Now, more and more make-up startups have established their own brands, which is great. But some argue that a few have taken it a step too far when it comes to developing brand image, with some appearing to carry an image that’s similar to international brands.
I recently came across a few viral articles about an entrepreneur who opened her cosmetics store named Sefarra in Kota Baru.
Sephora Shopping bag
Apparently it’s owned by online influencer Farra Fareez, who also founded her own line of make-up.
Butwhatmadeitviralwasthefactthat the image of the brand bears a strong resemblance to cosmetics chain store Sephora.
Naturally this drew criticism from fellow make-up mavens and anyone who knows Sephora.
From the choice of colours for the brand’s logo, to the font, packaging and everything in between, fans of Sephora wasted no time in accusing Sefarra of copying Sephora.
I wouldn’t disagree either. Sefarra’s shopping bag is also similar to Sephora’s iconic black-and-white striped bag. Phew! The comments from social media users were brutal.
That’s not the worst part. Some netizens have claimed that Sefarra sells a variety of fake branded make-up too. Apparently Sefarra claims its store is”inspired” by Sephora but locals are convinced it is a knock-off of the international make-up chain store.
Pictures of Sefarra’s set of miniature perfumes have also riled up some quarters as they look extremely similar to a miniature perfume collection by Chanel.
Based on the descriptions on its Facebook page, the scents are inspired by Coco Chanel, Dior Addict, Chloe and Gucci Guilty.
The spotlight on Sefarra also drew attention to other local cosmetics lines that have “cloned” the image of renowned make-up brands.
New local make-up brand Anas has also made its mark among locals who can’t help but notice that the packaging of its lip creams looks strangely similar to the ones from Nars, a cosmetics company from France.
I mean, who doesn’t know Nars? It has long established a large footprint here and is one of the most soughtafter make-up brands besides MAC, Bobbi Brown and more. Its most obvious copied feature is the font.
Now I wonder, with the unveiling of Rihanna’s new make-up line Fenty Beauty, will there be more local startups popping up with their own “inspired” version of the popular beauty line? We’ll have to wait and see.