The devastating effects of being copied
Sadly, Jo isn’t the first person to have had her designs copied, nor will she be the last. IP theft is particularly rife in the fashion environment, with supermarkets and big online retailers being the worst culprits.
Perhaps they don’t realise they’ve created an exact copy until it’s called out but, regardless of the final outcome, the damage it causes can’t be undone. They take your hard work and produce a copy that means little to them, but is your life’s work, which subsequently, takes your time, energy and money to fight, meaning the growth of your business is put on hold.
It’s not just corporates who are guilty of copying but small businesses too
Unfortunately, there are also cases of small businesses ripping off other small businesses and, whilst the big brands doing it hurts, a fellow small business doing it cuts deep. Small businesses and founders are a community. Together we’re stronger and can stand behind one another when needed, protecting and championing one another. Jo has experience of this herself, telling us, “It’s so upsetting to see a small brand doing it, and there needs to be more legislation when it comes to what you can and can’t do, and if it happens to you — what you do then.” So what did Jo do?
Jo Tutchener-Sharp’s story: how to beat the copycats
When Jo’s A Superhero Has My Back design was replicated by a large supermarket chain, she found it incredibly difficult to deal with. “I think when it first happens, it really is like being stabbed in the heart, because you’ve done all that work, and your heart and soul has gone into it,” she told us. “Then, when you see a big brand casually replicating it, it hurts so much.”
Following taking on the supermarket — and winning — Jo then had to overcome a similar battle with another of her designs, as it was replicated by a retail giant. Again, she emerged victorious following a legal case which saw them pay the profits from sales back to Scamp and Dude, which Jo then donated to children’s charities. With a career that’s seen her work with established clients in fashion and beauty PR, Jo recognises that, although she found it natural to challenge such injustice, not everyone has the confidence to do so.
