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I think there should definitely be more stern laws protecting your creativity, but not too much so to bar the natural progression or growth of the fashion industry. It just seems that not too many are creative these days or just have too much money lying around and would rather spend millions promoting dead end products just to break-even or barely turn a profit…time for some innovation!
By now you’re probably wondering what I’m writing about right?
Well I was at a local shopping center this weekend in a footlocker store where I thought I saw a pair of Prada Americas pictured below:
But in all actuality they were the new Fila’s that have been on promotional rotation on MTV, BET and VH1 by up and coming Hip Hop artist “Hurricane Chris”. This puts them in the same boat as all the sneaker lines that have came up off of the styling of the Air Force One shoe by Nike, but even worse in my opinion.
New Fila sneaker:
Unless Fila is now owned by Prada this is a definite slap in the face and the Fila version is as you probably already guessed half the price. When footwear company’s make moves like this it kills the overall exclusiveness or makes the means to obtain such a pair of sneakers useless, because their is a cheaper more streamlined version available. Anybody big on sneakers knows that the industry thrives off of exclusive releases and limited edition. Anything fake, bootleg, look a like pretty much puts negative spin on the originators product.
Do you think this was a smart move by Fila? Am I blowing this out of proportion 
? Where should legal protection of your designs and copyrights begin and end?
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February 7th, 2008 at 10:51 am
yo them fila junks is so wack they straight bit prada hard i would be mad as hell if that was my design or idea
February 8th, 2008 at 9:48 am
The funny thing is is that the shoe is selling! I dont think the average consuner that goes into a footlocker is aware that this fila shoe is a rip off of a prada a-cup. They just see it as that new hot ish that is being worn by their favorite (for the next 5 min) rapper. A friend of mine (who manages a footlocker) told me that when people come into his store and ask about the shoe they ask for it by the rappers name. They dont realize (or dont care) that the shoe is a knockoff they just know that their new favorite rapper is wearing the shoe in that video where he has 50 half naked women dancing around him while he throws monolopy money in the air (makin it rain).
February 9th, 2008 at 12:31 am
This article should be in DNR or on the front page of the damn WSJ ! I dont see how Levi and Polo can files lawsuits and win but companies let situations like this just go by. I look in my closet every morning and see hella sneakers that ive worn once or twice and ask myself why did i only buy them to match an outfit…I stopped wearing Timbs when Avirex and other companies started rippin them, same thing happen with AF1’s. For the people that invested years into Pradas, Jordans, Crispy Wheat Timbs (Constructs),AF1’s … back to square 1.
February 11th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
Fila is an Italian company as is Prada, maybe you got some connections going on there. With all the mergers and acquisitions happening today, it is hard to keep track of who owns who.
If Prada feel they are being ripped, they will go after the offenders.
March 7th, 2008 at 7:30 pm
damm, i have been rocking prda before rappers even knew what they were. this is little bit of subject, but for all u hip hop heads that know what im talking about. i am not racist fr from it, but the majority of rappers are black, and they are all wearing dc shoes,vans small white t’s, ed hardy affliction, i have been rocking that style and when i was in high school they were like what the hell is ed hardy and prada shoes are those, now the same people telling me that are wearing it a year or 2 later. i used to get laughed at for wearing my white t’s fitted, and v neck shirts, and then a year later a few rappers get a normal stylest and the whole game is dressing like skaters and wearing prada shoes. i was always in middle school by all my blac freinds dont dree like ur ghetto ur white. so who now hows the balls to say the same thing to rappers nd shit. not me cuz im not down to get raceisit thing going on. but u get the point. and by the way those filas are tacky as hell, prada shoudnt even be worried cuz the people that buy prada are not the people that by fila far from it.
March 31st, 2008 at 11:49 am
Well I am an employee at Footlocker in Michigan… Yesterday I was talking to one of my managers and he said that he read somewhere on the internet that Fila actually owns Prada…… I was like what the fuck???? but then he explained that Fila is real big over in Italy and has been around for a real long time and probably owns Prada… I dont know how true this is but its just a thought