BigShinyThing

The Guardian reports that Chloe are planning to sue high street chain Kookai over their copies of the brand’s £1000plus handbags. This could signal the end of ‘cheap chic’ where chains such as Topshop and Matalan have made a killing ripping off the catwalk. Chloe, which is owned by the Richemont Group, alleges that Kookai’s Stitch Pocket Bag is far too similiar to its Silverado bag. The high street imitation costs £35, less than a 30th of the Chloe £1,086 bag.

The move signals that the designer houses are calling to a halt the ‘cheap chic’ imitations which have been a staple of the high street for some years now. Top Shop, Matalan and George at Asda are just some of the brands which specialise in churning out so-called ‘fast fashion’ - cheap copies of catwalk looks. Ralph Toledano, president and managing director of Chloe, said:

We realised that the only way was to be tough. We spend huge sums on research and development. It had to be a real war. I have no sympathy for them.

Kookai have refused to comment on the case.

In January last year, the head of the body governing French fashion, Didier Grumbach, suggested holding fashion shows in secret to end the plundering. He said then that the situation was becoming

…really embarrassing. Not only do they deliver faster but it is 10 times cheaper and eventually nobody knows who invented the product any more because the copycat delivers ahead of the innovator.

However, the fashion industry rarely attributes its own sources of inspiration - more than often not the street itself. Numerous vintage shops report of designers rifling through their stock looking for next season’s ‘big thing’. Marc by Marc Jacobs, currently one of the most desirable labels out there, often features looks inspired by the 1960s and 1970s. So where does it end?