Anthropologie Takes Forever 21 To Court

Brittney says:
Mon, 27th Apr 200910:25 am 

While I totally agree that Anthropologie is ridiculously overpriced, the fact that Forever 21 took the design that Anthropologie created (pretty sure that's called stealing), Anthropologie definitely has a right to fight them.

Nan says:
Mon, 27th Apr 200910:29 am 

Ok, I get that they (and others) are ticked for getting their designs stolen, but how is this any different from say generic brands making lower-priced versions of food? It's not exactly the same, but it's pretty damn close, just like the clothes. I'm no lawyer, but I don't really see the difference.

K says:
Mon, 27th Apr 200910:38 am 

I'm sure what Forever21 marketed was not the actual Anthropologie design. They probably cut at least 5 inches off the hemline and produced it in knit jersey or another cheap fabric, and therefore produced something that was nothing like the design Anthropologie was selling.

Forever21 and H&M are built trend-following; they are supposed to be stealing idea from the top companies. They take an idea, chew it up, and sell it as something similar, but not exactly the same as the original idea. It should be ok as long as they didn't steal an exact pattern or an exact design.

Casey says:
Mon, 27th Apr 20091:55 pm 

K, while I agree with you, that probably isn't the case. I worked for Hollister Co. for 3 years and I worked nearly every day of those three years, so I know their clothes backwards and forwards. I stopped into forever 21 every once in awhile and would find EXACT COPIES of Hollister Co.'s clothes. A pair of shorts (that I happened to be wearing the day I found the copy) that we had at hollister I found at Forever 21, I compared them and they were identical, the exact fabric, the exact buttons, the only difference was there wasn't a seagull and they were ten dollars cheaper. I also found a stripped tube top with 3 buttons down the front cleavage that was identical to the one we sold, sans the seagull and at a cheaper price (Hollister Co. isn't even THAT expensive!)

So I am sure they are not just similar cheaper items, they most very likely are identical to the originals.

But the concept of them being taken to court for this is similar to the fact that it is illegal to buy/sell the counterfeit purses in china town.

stealing is stealing.

Mazuba says:
Mon, 27th Apr 20093:57 pm 

Forever 21 is known for "relicating" famous designs.It was sued by DVF,Gwen Stefani etc.so this is nothing new.I guess the desingers for f21 watch fashion tv and attend shows to see what the new trends are,then call their partners in china and in less than a month,they have a look-alike version of desinger geer.Most desingers get their clothes made in china,Malaysia etc so in the end,the costs of production are the same,except that dvf has a particular brand quality attached to it so they can get away with selling it for a higher cost.

Anna says:
Mon, 27th Apr 20094:33 pm 

Just because a designer's clothes are overpriced doesn't give F21 the right to steal their designs. F21 makes exact copies of designer clothing. I understand producing similar items, but copying the silhouette, stitching, pockets, details, etc. EXACTLY should be illegal. Fashion designers work hard and their art shouldn't be copied and sold for $10 bucks.

Annabelle says:
Mon, 27th Apr 20095:19 pm 

Ironically, the knowledge that Forever 21 has clothing that is identical (or close) to Anthro's expensive dresses actually makes me want to shop at Forever 21 more. Whether or not they win, Forever 21 is going to come out of this with increased publicity.

Lily says:
Mon, 27th Apr 20095:55 pm 

I have experience with seeing a hollister shirt that I own in a forever 21 store 2 months after I bought it. Same pattern, just no seagull as well. Casey, I didn't really think much about it, but it is kind of wierd. Maybe they have the same fabric distributor?? I personally LOVE anthropologie!! But sometimes I think we pay more just for a tag that no one sees…

thestorysofar says:
Mon, 27th Apr 20095:57 pm 

stealing is one thing, ill give them that. but i would argue against the idea that theyre loosing that much business. perhaps some. but i cant afford anthropologie. its not one or the other, its whatever forever 21 is selling, because i can afford it.

also, this isnt new for forever 21.

but how is this any different than knockoff designer purses and things? its not even like theyre putting an "anthropology" label on it or something.

Lassy says:
Mon, 27th Apr 20096:34 pm 

For one, BCBG is notorious for copying other more high end designer looks and translating it for the masses. Their designs are without a doubt, inspired by other more inaccessible brands. Same with Steve Madden. I can always count on them to have a cheaper version of a runway hit or a high-end shoe.

It trickles down, inevitably. And it's EVERYWHERE. Many mass-produced brands are inspired by other, more expensive versions. And everyone knows that you get what you pay for at Forever 21: crappy ass quality. Those who believe in quality will definitely seek it. In many ways, the lawsuit is grounded on some valid claims. In many ways, the lawsuit is frivolous. MANY of the clothes sold at anthropologie are made in the same types of factories as those sold at Forever 21 and start off with a similar wholesale price point.

I for one know one of the lawyers on counsel defending Forever 21, and their legal fees alone have amassed to nearly $1 million. ($600K was the count I heard last time, which was months ago). Is it worth it for Anthropologie to get hussy and fussy about it? I don't think so.

Andie says:
Tue, 28th Apr 20097:47 pm 

So even if Anthropologie sues Forever 21 they deserve it for the fact that the company exploits migrant workers everyday and no one seems to care! I agree that Forever 21 makes cheap clothes but at what price? The price is the backs of all those people taken advantage of every day. After all a dress that some one was paid 11 cents to make and the over priced brand it worth my conscience.

Google "Made in L.A"

delectual says:
Wed, 29th Apr 20095:12 am 

I totally agree with you!!!!

erin says:
Wed, 29th Apr 200910:08 pm 

Um, everyone knocks everyon off! Viva la free market! Even though I regularly shop at Anthro, I grit my teeth when shelling out for one of their frocks. Recently I saw one for upwards of $500 that resembled a tablecloth. Uh-oh… looks like that clothing buyer will be looking for a new job soon!

Danyell says:
Sun, 3rd May 200912:09 pm 

It's kinda cute that you people think seeing a similiar design at multiple stores is "stealing".

It's fashion people, and when something is cute, you can buy it at multiple stores, because its popular.

I pity you idiots.

joe says:
Tue, 5th May 20097:59 am 

Dress designs cannot be copyrighted. Only the fabric used in the garments may be copyrighted. Most of the time, designers use fabrics that they themselves did not create. Thus, they have no legal right to sue.

Besides, this is art/fashion!! This has been happening ever since it existed.

asobov5 says:
Tue, 5th May 200912:01 pm 

Great article ! As a savvy shopper , I completely agree . Stores like Forever 21 copy all designs and recreate them using cheaper materials so people can be trendy for a low price . I love anthro but seriously , cut those prices ! I would love to never have to shop in Forever 21 again , so please , Anthropologie, spare me from doing so !!

Emily says:
Sat, 22nd Aug 20097:23 am 

Original Designs are more expensive because they have to pay the salary of talented designers and product developers and merchandisers etc who spend time researching developing and designing a product, they try out numerous ideas/styles/details and colorways to achieve the end result which is appealing enough to companies like forever 21 who can then make a carbon copy with none of the ground work or the overheads. A product is worth is more than just the sum of the cost of materials.

Screddy says:
Tue, 29th Sep 20099:55 pm 

Forever 21 is parasitic. Don't work for Forever 21. It is a work culture and ethic that is absolutely monstrous. They are being sued by lots of great and interesting brands and designers — people who are creative, take risks, and spend long, long hours trying to invent a style and a garment that Forever 21 just steals flat out. They pay and treat their employees like crap. They have no respect for right and wrong (hence the lawsuits for thievery again and again). And they call themselves Christians. It's the opposite: it's a master-slave mentality that uses raw power and the law to steal from designers and cheat their workers. Shame on Forever 21. Karma is a bitch, though. So watch out.

Rachel says:
Sat, 3rd Oct 20099:35 am 

Perhaps Anthropology clothing is "over-priced" because it's not made in sweatshops like Forever 21's copies. Maybe you should learn how pay a fair price to encourage fair labor practices.

Sarah says:
Wed, 14th Oct 20096:48 pm 

Yes, it is a form of perjury (sp?)…however, give us girls who love Anthro designs something to wear at a decent price!! I wish I could have my sweet summer dress, flowy cardigan or $119 crochet shower curtain, but the fact of the matter is I have rent to pay and a stomach that needs feeding. Unfortunately many of the people who are the target market for Anthro CANNOT afford anything in that store. It's truly tragic. But, I do say so myself, that I will go there, get ideas and then find something similar at a second hand store…so, thank you Forever. I will buy your knock offs.

Jenny says:
Sun, 10th Jan 20106:32 am 

I do not shop at anthro …I am an even higher end fashion consumer. Here's the deal! If you can't afford it. You Can't Afford IT!!! I doesn't mean go find a knock off. It means get a better job if you want to afford luxury things such as a hot new fashion. Where do people get off thinking they can determine what anthro should charge. If all you can afford to do is feed your stomach…then feed your stomach and stay out of anthro. Forever 21 is a piece of dog bio fluid. How about the people who are on their side have someone come on your job and copy your work without a thought or the energy you put into and then run over to your boss and charge him half of what you get paid. Then your boss gets rid of you because you are too expensive…and now you still can't feed your stomach. I just wish people would pay more attention to the business and economic angle. Save 25 per month and buy the one quality dress you love once or twice a year versus crying about being able to afford stuff.

k says:
Wed, 13th Jan 20105:29 am 

Interesting article and well written. However, until you have worked in retail or a behind the scenes design field you can't get the point of view of Anthropologie. I hope that Anthropologie wins and here's why. Forever 21 is stealing someone elses work. As a designer I have had my work copied and it is not flattering ,it is stealing.

Kay says:
Mon, 18th Jan 201010:40 am 

God, you're simple-minded. Go, Anthro.

Emmie-Lane says:
Mon, 22nd Feb 201011:32 pm 

Well for those of you who can afford to shop at Anthro, Neiman Marcus, Betsey Johnson, ect…how excellent for you, I envy you. I on the other hand must pay rent, groceries, a cell phone, a car payment, health insurance…I get to buy a pair of designer jeans about every three months. It's a real treat. The truth is that many of Forever 21 designs (who apparently belong to other designers)–ha–are vintage inspired which means that they have made their way around the fashion circuit way before Forever 21 or Anthro ever even existed. I would love to see the designs that Anthro is claiming were copied because I bet I can tell where Anthro got the inspiration. HELLO! EVERYONE COPIES EVERYONE…ORIGINALITY IS DEAD. You may put your own spin on something, but it's been here before. I happen to enjoy getting a 30.00 dress that sometimes even looks cooler than the 300.00 one. Go Forever 21. On the sweatshop end, what can I really do about it? No matter where I turn, my budget is my budget and I didn't get a bailout so if you have a better suggestion I'm just dying to hear it… Every cheap piece of fashionable clothing (and sometimes the expensive stuff) was created using cheap labor. I'm just another cog in the machine.

Irene says:
Wed, 24th Feb 20109:26 am 

I looked at the comments. This isn't any different as the Generic brand and Name-brand food. Nor is it different from getting a shirt, and seeing almost the identical one at another store for a cheaper price. For example Look at the "plaid" shirt. Look how popular that is.

I can get one at Forever 21, or probably at any other store such as Ross, Bealls, Target, Walmart, and probably TJ Max.Same with, Sneakers, Keds, or any other vintage/popular clothing.Its called a "trend". If it's popular people are going to want to buy it. I think its no ones fault if you think about it. No one has a right to determine the prices that Anthropologie makes. They could Sell everything for $5 today, and $1000 tomorrow if they wanted too. No one can determine it but the seller. And we have absolutely no say it it. Danyell is right.

and Jenny has some points that are wrong, You make it sound easy. Its not my place to say this on here but, I'm 15 years old and i know that its hard to find a job with a good salary. You say

"If you can’t afford it. You Can’t Afford IT!!! It doesn’t mean go find a knock off. It means get a better job "

Some people work their whole lives to get to the place they get to be. Some people have hard lives if you don't know that.

Working at a little restaurant might be a luxury to certain

people. But say whatever you want to say, I think its just rude that you say this.

Fashion is mostly about what is popular. That's why we have stores.If I'm wearing a shirt that i bought at A brand-name store there IS a chance that i will find it somewhere else. And does anthropologie have any proof? Did the designers for forever 21 say " I'm going to copy an anthropologie dress."

No,they didn't. People on here complain about something that isn't for you to complain about. Let them solve the situation.

And people, Look at both of the stores clothing. Its not just a dress that looks the same.

Bunny says:
Sat, 27th Mar 20104:30 pm 

Anthropologie can sue but it's likely that although they probably won't win the legal battle, Forever21 will just end up settling with them and give them some sort of compensation.

What I find to be funny is that Anthropologie has a really bad reputation for exploiting young, new, indie designers. It's quite well known in the industry. Anthropologie will ask indie designers to submit their designs, make the changes they want and then NOT place an order with them. They make sure that they get to keep a copy of the sample regardless if they place an order or not.

Instead they will just take the design and reproduce it under their label. Sometimes they will also take their designs and reproduce it for the Urban Outfitters store as well. Basically they're being big hypocrites for suing Forever21 for the same practices that they follow themselves.

It's a rather catch22 b/c although they these designers know they could potentially get screwed over by Anthropologie, the ability for their work to be sold on such a large scale makes it worth it to them.

Just a little insight for some of you out there.

Kiko says:
Sat, 27th Mar 20107:32 pm 

Anthropologie is overpriced and anyone who is buying clothes there is getting ripped off big time. I mean, yea all clothing stores try to rip you of, but their exorbitant prices always make me laugh.

brittney says:
Tue, 7th Sep 20105:19 am 

To be honest I agree with you, If designers patent every design then no one can make anything because everyone will be getting sued. Plus every dress,shirt and pants I mean the cut of it has been made before. Think about it, the cutt of a basic t-shirt has been done before, anthro should be sued for that, that pink dress in the window should be sued because the same cutt and choice of color has been done before!!!

Burcu Gucuk says:
Fri, 24th Sep 201010:23 am 

I think you are wrong. You may find it okay for Forever 21 to steal a design and sell it cheaper but it is not ethical. First of all, Anthropologie dresses do not tear after the first wash, they are pretty well made. Yes they are over priced, but it is their choice to make. They can sell a dress for 1000$ if they want and noone can complain about it. Just don't buy the dress. They are in fact are not over priced like other prime designers even though there is an amazing work of art behind every dress. People work to design it, every single item in that store is well thought, creates a cohesive collection and carries the Anthropologie's style by renewing itself every sesason. Those designers work hard to create a garment and what Forever 21 does is stealing it. To be honest, everything in Forever 21 is stolen but I'm pretty sure Chanel wouldn't bother to bring it up because it's customer is so exlusive and it wouldn't hurt Chanel's profits. Since Anthropologie is not as expensive and doesn't have a customer base that is as selective as a premier designer brand, they have to bother with sueing.

Piccione says:
Wed, 5th Jan 20111:57 pm 

100% agree. Good post! I too think Anthro is way overpriced. I came from overseas and have seen outlets of expensive stores there. When those arrive here, they become 10 times or more expensive. The quality of Anthro doesn't even worth it and the cut is often weird. A lot of those just look super good on the model and in the pictures as if they were in a different world or fairyland, but when you put them on in normal daily life, it's a different story. I know if I were to see the same thing in a different store, I probably wouldn't even bother even if they were half the sale's price, not to mention the crazy Anthro price.

curiousgirl says:
Tue, 5th Apr 20111:09 pm 

If you were studying design, you would know the reason why Anthropologie is suing Forever 21.

tess says:
Wed, 11th May 20111:23 am 

you clearly don't know much about anthropologie do you? ha.

Rose says:
Fri, 8th Jul 20115:10 pm 

It's fine to have opinions but the way you've expressed yours is completely obnoxious. If you understood anything about design and business (aka FASHION), then you'd think otherwise about Anthropologie suing Forever 21 (which btw, is a store that is notorious for having sweatshops).

So do your research first, and then b**tch all you want when you have you facts straight.

Holly says:
Sat, 9th Jul 201111:12 pm 

I dislike both Anthropologie and F21, for different reasons. That said, Anthro has only themselves to blame for whatever they may be lacking in sales/profit. They are RIDICULOUSLY overpriced for what they sell. Even their "clearance/sale" items are pricey. Guess what? If you want to sell cotton day-dresses for $600+… you're probably not going to be too popular. It's not rocket science. I'm not saying they need to be bargain basement priced, but I challenge anyone to find a dress of any kind… at any time… at Anthro for less than $200. And these are not "fancy" dresses. They are simply "cute" cotton day-dresses… the same type that can be found at lots of other high quality retailers (i.e. not F21) for a LOT less. I wouldn't care a bit if Anthro went completely bankrupt.

lori says:
Sat, 27th Aug 20111:55 am 

Because that's the beauty of capitalism right? work hard, play hard. ya, say that to an immigrant janitor who also works as a mechanic during the day. That worker probably works 10X harder than you and getrs paid squids. "get a better job". its so easy right? esp when universities have stupid high tuition fees making it impossible for lower socio-economic populations to attend school to get this "better job". i say to you: Get off ur high horse and learn MORE about the world. ur ALMOST there. almost.

lori says:
Sat, 27th Aug 20111:56 am 

it is made in sweatshops. my sweater that i am wearing is made in madagascar. HMMMM!!
Anthro thinks its high end fashion. ITS NOT.

Angela says:
Tue, 6th Sep 20111:25 am 

Okay, I loved the designs I saw when I walked into an Anthropologie store for the first time. Then, my friend asked me to check the price tag. One cotton dress is $378. Wonderful. The dress didn't look as pretty afterwards.

I've heard about Forever 21 imitating other designs and the sweatshop ordeal in the past. But guess where I went for back-to-school shopping… Yes, you're right… Forever 21! Why? Well, with my not-so-rich-and-oh-so-middle-class budget of $250, I was able to buy three tanks, seven shirts plus two sweaters and a cardigan, one pair of black denim jeans, two fabulous dresses, a headband, earrings and a necklace. So honestly, Forever 21 wins this debate. Both companies have repuations for recycling looks from others but that is a part of fashion. Of course, I disdain and absolutely depise outright copying of others' designs but knock-off or not… that is not something that the average consumer cannot control.

Jean says:
Tue, 31st Jan 20128:13 pm 

If you support forever 21 youre a god damn retard. thats all i have to say.