Point (tru.che / imakeshinythings):
I'm very disappointed in Urban Outfitters. I know they have stolen designs from plenty of other artists. I understand that they are a business, but it's not cool to completely rip off an independent designer's work.
Double-point (consumerist.com):
Something is rotten in Denmark, or rather, in the I Heart Destination jewelry line of baubles offered by Urban Outfitters. Turns out those $19 danglers in the shape of the various United States of America with a heart cut-out are exactly like necklaces crafted by an independent jewelry designer named Stevie.
Double-tweet point (myaimistrue.com):
Today has been a fun ride. Behold the power of social media muscle. (...) What I do have - and the reason that my call for a boycott on Urban Outfitters spread so fast and wide - is a tribe. A tight knit group of independent artists and crafters that follow me. My cause resounded with them. They spread it, and their friends spread it, and a few big influencers on Twitter spread it, and then it was gone.
Counter-point (regretsy.com):
Now, I'm not generally the voice of reason, so this is an uncomfortable position to take. But I'm just not sure I want to start a boycott over an idea that many people have had, some for years before Truche even opened her Etsy store.
I'm not saying that Urban Outfitters doesn't help themselves to the designs of others. They certainly have a record of pilfering designs, and they may very well have stolen this one. The question, for me at least, is who did they steal it from? And if we don't know that much, how do we know it's really been stolen at all?
Double counter-point (consumerist.com's ^H division):
While this particular seller may have thought up the idea all on her own, different versions of the necklace predate her shop, dating back to as early as 2008.
Maybe there really are no new ideas out there.
"OMG WTF is wrong with you" point (Urban Outfitters):
In her recent blog post and on Twitter Koerner claims that Urban Outfitters stole her designs or was inspired in some way by the items in her Etsy shop for our I Heart Destination necklaces. In fact, a quick search on Etsy for ‘state necklace' reveals several other sellers with similar products (as seen here on Regretsy) who offered their wares as much as a year earlier than Ms. Koerner.
We are not implying that Koerner stole her necklace idea from one of these other designers, we are simply stating the obvious—that the idea is not unique to Koerner and she can in no way claim to be its originator.
"Let's learn from this" point (UserVoice):
This week a blogger with a mere 1,000 followers on Twitter discovered (apparently just the latest in many) an Urban Outfitters product that was a rip-off of an independent artist. She blogged and tweeted about it. The result was that thousands of people retweeted it, she & Urban Outfitters became a trending topic, and American Apparel removed the product from their shelves.
(...)
Any customer can deliver a killing blow, and any customer can deliver a fame-creating endorsement. Feel free to focus on courting "big" bloggers and tweeters for press - but don't risk treating any of your customers badly. You never know what might happen.
My conclusion:
The internet is a batshit crazy place. It has brought a scale of millions to the lynch mob mentality every little village has been capable of for millenia. Like in all of history, many (most?) lynch mobs are uninformed, or actively disinformed, or even deliberately manipulated, but if they're hauling you up a lamppost or lighting a fire under your feet, that's of little comfort.
Be aware of that, be ready for random acts of wanton violence from unexpected sources, watch out for the sudden flash lynch mobs appearing out of nowhere and baying for your blood, and when they do happen, be on the ball and active in managing the mob.
Otherwise, expect to get lynched from time to time.
If you read this far, you should follow me on twitter here.
