Design Purgatory...Knock offs

I returned last week from a couple of days spent at High Point market in North Carolina.
The highlight of the trip was meeting the charismatic, energetic resourceful and wonderful Liz of Dovecote Decor. She introduced me to the rural beauty of Salem, where she resides and wrote the most detailed review of this spring market, highlighting some great resources. http://dovecotedecor.blogspot.com/

I even purchased a fairly large whimsical and utterly impractical antique Dovecote...slight problem, in my excitement, I handed my credit card but have no recollection as to the name of the seller...my dovecote is sitting in High Point, waiting to be shipped to its occasionally ditsy owner.

This is not the one I purchased, mine is far larger and can house an extended family of doves

image:http://www.amyperryantiques.co.uk/?p=531

Onto the real topic of this post...

Please allow me to VENT !! One downer about trade show is the usual lack of creativity and the knock offs staring at you. I cannot tell you how tired I am of these manufacturers who do not come up with one single original thought nor design, go around showrooms and stores that invest in creative talent and shameless as they are, just steal their design. to me this is theft, theft of creativity, originality, endless hours and efforts put into creating an original pieces.

I have been on the receiving  end of this type of highway larceny. A few years ago, my showroom and brand name Interieurs made front page of the Design section of the New York Times, its title: where do Crate and Barrel, Pottery Barn and the likes go shopping?...at Interieurs

Most copies are made overseas which takes labor away from talented american craftmen. One day, I may go into details of what I have seen in China, and cried in Vietnam at the sight of young children taking batteries apart in dark, humid airless rooms

The most copied lighting piece from our Jose Esteves collection:

image:Interieurs Design Magazine

Brocante chandelier whose knock off I have seen at the Gift Show in New York and numerous catalogs.
 

I just purchased this pieces at BDDW in New York, one of my favorite showroom

Looked what I saw at High Point! Shame on you NUEVO LIVING!

One of the worst offenders are the likes of  Design Within Reach  who have in previous years blatantly produced mid-century pieces and other modern furniture without a licence.
read article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/31/garden/31dwr.html

I will pass on the list of culprits. Just the other day, a designer made our relentless efforts to be creative so worthwhile. As  her client commented on having seen the proposed desk and chandelier in Restoration hardware, the designer looked at her (without noticing that I was within earshot) and exclaimed...absolutely not, I would never settle for anything else but the original.

Please, help keep design, originality, alive, do not settle for cheap copies. I do understand budgets, but if you cannot stretch for the real things, go to a different source, shop around and have fun in the process. There is a lot of fresh original designs and talents at  reasonably prices out there, all they need is an audience!