Designers Talk Knock-offs in the Digital Age

This week in New York, Teen Vogue put together a panel of industry insiders to discuss the changes fashion has had to go through in the digital age, which included Joseph Altuzarra and the CEO of Proenza Schouler. Part of the panel discussion was the sharing of information via social media and the impact this has had on designers. While the immediate access to runway presentations have enabled customers to be closer to brands than ever before, it has also increased the challenge of protecting a designers work. 

For example, Proenza Schouler shared  that it has a new bag set to launch in November, and it is under a lock and key so tight, they wouldn’t even send it to Vogue. The only defense designers have in this world of fashion immediacy is to not release pictures. Altuzarra also acknowledged that because of the constant copying “you do try to push yourself more so you become un-copyable.” Customers are more accustomed to searching for "the look" that fast-fashion so quickly can satisfy rather than the quality of the item. As a result, designers must resort to these methods to maintain the originality of their designs for as long as possible. In a digital age, where images of a runway show are immediately available on the Internet and are knocked off before the designer's work is available in the stores, the challenge of protection will only increase. Some on the panel even suggested that designers allow for the knock-offs in exchange for a cut. In any case, it's clear those within the industry are adapting to these rapid changes.