By Chinazam Ikechi-Uko.
It is such a shame. Do better. Use your own brain; these were the last words spoken in response to US fashion retailer Akira’s Plush denim dress. The brand had been caught red-handed copying a design, and in a swift reaction, they pulled the dress off their website. They have just been bested by a small Nigerian fashion brand called Kadiju.
In 1839, author and playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton said, “the pen is mightier than the sword.” For a while, many have disagreed. However, it’s 2024, and in the fashion industry, Instagram has provided a platform for even the smallest of brands to challenge giants and succeed.
The fast fashion industry has developed a reputation for imitating the designs of both established and emerging designers, both locally and internationally. This practice can significantly impact younger brands, as they watch their creative work duplicated while they strive to carve out their own identity.
While fashion is inherently cyclical, many brands choose to resist the temptation to chase fleeting trends, opting instead to focus on crafting distinctive designs. This commitment to creativity and uniqueness often makes them prime targets for fast fashion brands.
In the past, copycat allegations were primarily resolved in court. Nowadays, however, a simple social media post calling out the accused can cause significant damage. While some of these controversies may fade over time, others can have lasting repercussions. Below are six instances where Nigerian brands found themselves involved in copycat controversies, including both those accused and those serving as plaintiffs.
KAI COLLECTIVE VS FENDI:
Most designers spend their lives trying to make an ‘it item’. Like Brat summer, they hope to make a design that defines the zeitgeist. At 28, Fisayo Longe found herself on the lips of every fashion enthusiast in 2020. Her fashion label, Kai Collective, had launched the Gaia dress, and by the end of 2020, Longe’s design had been featured in editorials around the globe, including a few Vogue and Forbes.
Gaia’s print made it a distinct and recognisable style. So when Longe spotted a similar pattern on Italian label, FENDI’s Resort 2022 collection, she called foul. FENDI had released robes with similar colours and prints to the Gaia dress, and this had coincided with Kai Collective’s launch of the Gaia robes. Frustated by FENDI’s actions, Longe took to Instagram to say, “We already have it ready to ship so should we release it today? Gaia dropped and the fashion industry just ran out of ideas?”
Longe stood firm and sent a cease and desist letter, as the Gaia design was copyrighted. But made no further legal actions, as they were already tackling another European label at the time. FENDI never commented on the situation.
KAI COLLECTIVE VS BOOHOO:
Kai Collective saw a global rise in the industry that a Nigerian-affiliated brand had not experienced in a while. As seen on famous figures like Saweetie and Temi Otedola, the Gaia dress was beloved by many, and by 2021, it would be copied by many. One copycat included the fashion retailer leviathan— BooHoo.
BooHoo is a British fashion retailer with sales of over a billion dollars. The brand is best known for its ephemeral celebrity collections; this lineup includes global stars like Zendaya, Kourtney Kardashian, Rema, and Shallipopi.
However, the British label found itself in hot water when its summer collection (allegedly) drew inspiration from Kai Collective’s Gaia line. Unknown to BooHoo, Longe had obtained design registrations for the U.K., E.U. and the U.S. According to The Fashion Law website, Longe sent a cease and desist letter and demanded £30,000 in damages and legal fees. In a conversation with The Native, Longe revealed that she went into negotiations and discussions with BooHoo in March 2021.
In January of 2022, Longe announced that BooHoo and Kai Collective had settled and BooHoo discontinued the sale of the collection.
DESIREE IYAMA VS THE INTERNET:
Kai Collective getting BooHoo to take down the designs was enough victory for her well-wishers. Longe had won in the eyes of public opinion. However, the designer of the eponymous label, Desiree Iyama did not have such favour.
Iyama was ridiculed and attacked after she tried to explain to an X user that they stole her design. The genius of the debacle began when Marvey of Marvey-R posted a video on X, formerly known as Twitter. The video showed the account owner in an identical lilac version of Iyama’s Meraki dress. Marvey took no credit for the style and stated that in her caption which read, “I looked so good the other night 😍I made my dress. Inspired by Desiree Iyama.”
Iyama saw the post and took to the app to set the record straight, saying, “Nothing about this is an inspiration. It is an outright copy.”
The internet saw Iyama’s response as in poor taste and unnecessary, after all, the girl clearly admires the work. In a conversation with 49th Street, Marvey (an upcoming designer), discussed the ordeal, stating, “I was a little bit surprised by the response, but I understand. She’s just someone I look up to as an aspiring designer and I was excited to make the dress for myself for my class dinner. Maybe I should have used a better word, we learn every day.”
Marvey admires Desiree Iyama despite the situation, explaining, “I would never do anything like that to her brand. Next time, I’ll choose better words and do better. But it was never my intention to downplay her craft.”
MOWALOLA VS LAMONTWEAR:
Things are never what they seem, and the theft allegations against Mowalola have gone on and evolved for so long that there might be a hidden Old man coyote pulling the strings. There is an annual ritual of dragging Mowalola after every appearance at Fashion Week. Mowalola has had to fight allegations against Islamophobia, nepotism, drug selling, paranoia, and even rumours of being entangled with a r*pist.
However, most of these are rooted in misunderstandings and misinformation. Many X users refer to Mowalola as a thief, but none can point to a product she stole, proven by a tweet when Mowalola asked people to do so. The word thief is given to someone who commits acts of theft frequently. But the number of times Mowalola has been accused and it was proven to be true is once, and the whistleblower was the cowboy hat brand, LAMONTWEAR.
In March 2021, Lauryn Brown, owner of LAMONTWEAR, criticised Mowalola for leading her to believe they would collaborate, only to use Brown’s designs in her new collection without credit or payment. In Paper Magazine, Brown expressed, “It was being played out right in front of my face, and I was just seeing me being ghosted at the same time that my intellectual property was being recreated.”
On March 18, Brown made a now-viral X thread detailing the full context of the situation. After public backlash, Mowalola responded, apologised and proposed a collaboration that included shares for Brown, but she ultimately declined the offer.
KADIJU VS AKIRA:
If there ever was a Nigerian fashion brand that embodied the phrase, here for the arts and not the charts, it would be Kadiju. The maximalist Nigerian label garnered a devout following from its eccentric designs that revolutionise the term wearable art, as well as creating new silhouettes. Its daring otherworldly designs are breathtaking, so it came as a surprise to Kadiju’s founder, Oyindamola Aleshinloye, that a fast fashion label would attempt to replicate their intricate styles.
So when the Chicago retailer, Akira, took to its e-commerce site to announce its latest design— a plush denim dress, Aleshinloye was not having it. The plush dress closely resembled the Kadiju’s signature checkered dress and Aleshinloye took to Instagram to express her thoughts. In a post, Aleshinloye said, “The original @kadijuofficial dress — the fabric pattern and colour choice is a direct inspiration from my elementary school uniform.” To Akira, she said, “It is such a shame. Do better. Use your own brain.”
CUTE SAINT VS INCERUNMEN:
Another day, another fast fashion brand hoping to steal from a Nigerian Fashion Brand and get away with it. This time, it is menswear. On the 21st of March, the Nigeria-based label, Cute Saint took to Instagram to call out the menswear site, Incerunmen for its blatant copy of their 2023 Igboya collection.
Cute Saint, a brand synonymous with denim, unveiled its 2023 collection in Paris, Lagos, and London. In an Instagram they said, “Intellectual property theft is unacceptable! It is disheartening to see a look from our Igboya collection– crafted to tell our authentic story– reduced to a low-quality copy.”
