Kiwi designer accused of copying clothes
Former employees of a New Zealand fashion designer have accused her of copying designs from international labels.
Vicki Taylor runs high-end local fashion label Taylor and online designer shopping platform The Shelter, which sells items from other labels.
The Taylor brand is described as ‘‘proudly designed and made in New Zealand’’ by an ‘‘inspiring team of designers ... talented machinists, finishers and pressers all working their magic’’.
Its luxury items routinely sell for more than $500, some for as much as $1000.
But Stuff spoke to two former employees who believed Taylor was ‘‘stealing’’ designs including from global label Issey Miyake and Chinese designer Uma Wang.
The pair said they witnessed items initially purchased to be sold on The Shelter being copied and reproduced under the Taylor brand.
‘‘Vicki’s practice of making direct copies from brands purchased for The Shelter was common knowledge among staff – and something that I observed first hand both in her workroom, and on the shop floor,’’ one said.
The other said: ‘‘She goes to Paris twice a year and buys [items] wholesale to sell on The Shelter but then she picks things up and takes them back to her workroom and gets the tailormaker to reproduce the pattern so she can sell them under her own brand. That has been happening for a while.’’
Stuff has agreed not to name the women to protect their careers in the fashion industry but has confirmed details of their employment history with Taylor.
They pointed to two black dresses with an asymmetrical hem. One sold for US$970 from Uma Wang and a seemingly similar dress, the Taylor Surmise, was $497, and was so popular it had more than one production run.
The former staff also claimed tops had been copied from Uma Wang and Issey Miyake.
In a statement, Taylor rejected the suggestion that designs were copied.
‘‘The Surmise dress was inspired by our Parachute Dress, which we first designed in 2014 and has a long split in the back neck. We also took inspiration for the back from our Perimeter Sweater which was designed by Taylor some years ago. This style has been a mainstay of the range in many different variations, including with and without sleeves, and in 2015 we designed the open Perimeter Sweater featuring the open back detail that inspired the Surmise dress.
‘‘While the two dresses have similarities, in no way did we intentionally copy Uma Wang’s design or intend to undermine her creative expression as a designer. Taylor has been a New Zealand owned and operated boutique brand for 20 years and is proud to design specifically for Kiwi women.’’
Nazneen Sethna, who teaches fashion design, said the dresses were similar but slightly different.
Alex Sims
‘‘It looks like a copycat but not entirely the same pattern.
‘‘Also, for example, even though both dresses have the cowl back they are not the same length. It is as if someone wanted to make the original dress but couldn’t quite make it identical.’’
Alex Sims, an associate professor in the department of commercial law at Auckland University, said there was potentially an intellectual property issue under copyright law.
‘‘Asymmetrical dresses have been fashionable for the past year or so. So a black sleeveless dress with an asymmetrical bottom is nothing exceptional and the bottom of the Taylor is not the same as the [Wang] dress – but the added detail at the back looks rather similar.
‘‘The fact that two things look rather similar is not enough for copyright infringement. The first question would be whether the person who designed the Taylor dress had seen [Wang’s] dress.
‘‘But even then, the test for copyright infringement for clothing isn’t as strict as for other things as it is usual for people in the fashion industry to create garments that have been inspired by others. Also that dress with its loose unstructured cut is in keeping with Taylor’s other pieces, many of them are also loose.’’
Sims said that in the United States and Australia it was not possible to copyright clothing.
‘‘Ironically, the lack of copyright protection actually promotes innovation as people are forced to innovate. This issue becomes important when dealing with trans-Tasman companies, ie the New Zealand subsidiary of Jeanswest was found liable for copyright infringement when its parent company sent it jeans that copied someone else’s jeans.’’
Uma Wang has been approached for comment.
‘‘The fact that two things look rather similar is not enough for copyright infringement.’’