Cousins! The growingly popular online fashion retailer of Shein has found themselves in some serious legal troubles after being slapped with a hefty lawsuit upon claims of racketeering related copyright infringement!
According to reports from CBS news, a series of independent fashion designers have filed a lawsuit within a California court this week, accusing Shein of, “secretive algorithm”. The act is described as researching trends and influential designs in order to copy and paste on their website.
Court records show that independent designers Krista Perry, Larissa Martinez, and Jay Baron – have issued claims that both Shein and their parent company, Zoetop Business Company, Ltd, “engaged in produc[ing], distribut[ing], and selling exact copies of their creative works.”
The Independent reports that a suit filed by Perry, Martinez, and Baron accuses Shein of replicating “truly exact copies of [their] copyrightable graphic designs”. Which includes Berry’s artwork titled “Make It Fun” and Blintz’s “Orange Daises” design. Barron’s “Trying My Best” artwork, which they claim was also copied by Shein, is not only a registered copyright but the phrase was also trademarked by Barron.
The plaintiffs are currently arguing that they “have suffered and will continue to suffer substantial damage” to their businesses and “a diminishment in the value of their designs and art, their rights, and their reputations”.
They’ve accused Shein of establishing a “secretive algorithm” that helps them in discovering viral fashion trends in order to “produce very small quantities of [its] item for sale” – as 100-200 units per SKU – in the case that an artist claims “the design was stolen”.
“The brand has made billions by creating a secretive algorithm that astonishingly determines nascent fashion trends – and by coupling it with a corporate structure, including production and fulfillment schemes, that are perfectly executed to grease the wheels of the algorithm, including its unsavory and illegal aspects,” reads the suit.
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