British fashion is under threat from artificial intelligence that can identify popular products and flood the market with cheap copies, designers have warned.
Furious independent creators have accused Chinese retail giant Shein of using technology to ‘systematically steal’ their biggest-selling creations from social media.
And they say their industry may be destroyed if Big Tech is allowed to ignore copyright law, as Sir Keir Starmer has proposed.
The UK creative industry, including the Daily Mail, has launched a Make It Fair campaign that aims to ensure creators are properly compensated.
Deborah Breen, 45, who founded underwear brand Wilde Mode in 2018, instructed lawyers after Shein started selling £4 knock-offs of a £60 set she designed – complete with a logo based on her grandfather’s signature.
‘I was crushed and took it very personally,’ she said. ‘But since posting about my experience online, I’ve heard from dozens of other designers whose work was stolen.
‘The only way Shein could be making copies that quickly, and at that scale, is with the help of AI.
‘How can little guys like me compete with that? It is already putting us out of business.’
Fashion designer Fern Davey’s designs keep getting ripped off by corporate companies. She is pictured holding one her designs that has been copied
The £78 design was copied by Shein who was selling their own version (pictured) for just £4
Accessories designer Gemma Keith (pictured), 31, has considered taking her products offline and selling them at traditional street markets
Shein agreed to remove the copied products and paid Dundee-based Ms Breen £2,500 compensation.
The fast-fashion site, which turned over £30 billion last year, is known for its designer ‘dupes’ – garments at rock-bottom prices which bear an uncanny resemblance to expensive branded items.
Popular social media accounts are devoted to spotting Shein dupes of various brands including Zara and Oh Polly.
Shein, founded in 2008, uses an AI system designed by Shanghai-based tech giant NTX Global that ‘streamlines the apparel process from beginning to end’.
It reportedly lets the firm get new lines into production in as little as three days. The store releases up to 10,000 new items daily.
Announcing its partnership with Shein last year, NTX managing partner Charles Duan said: ‘AI and fashion are logical partners.
‘We are thrilled to contribute our AI expertise to major brands and emerging fashion companies that want to follow trends and sell products on the Shein platform.’
It’s a far cry from the workshop of Fern Davey, 29, a Bournemouth-based women’s clothing designer who makes all her pieces by hand.
Pictured: One of Ms Keith’s most popular items, a £7 tote bag printed with an original cat design
The design for the tote bag has been copied by Shein and sold for £3.75
Deborah Breen (pictured), 45, who founded underwear brand Wilde Mode in 2018, instructed lawyers after Shein started selling £4 knock-offs of a £60 set she designed
She had to confront Shein when she realised it was selling copies of her £78 lingerie sets for just £4.
‘It’s so depressing to think that a computer can steal designs that someone has poured their heart and soul into.’
Meanwhile accessories designer Gemma Keith, 31, has considered taking her products offline and selling them at traditional street markets.
One of her most popular items, a £7 tote bag printed with an original cat design, was copied by the site and sold for £3.75.
‘Independent designers like me are already in a battle for survival,’ she said.
‘Allowing Big Tech to take it all for free would be the end.’
And Manchester-based designer Lucy Howarth, 41, whose ‘love bum’ shorts-and-top set was duplicated by Shein, blasted: ‘Of course, human designers take inspiration from others. But when Shein ripped off my set, it wasn’t just similar, it was identical.’
Mother-of-two Bex Coster, 40, of Milton Keynes, created Steve the Positive Potato, a crocheted spud clutching a positive message.
Breen’s £60 set is pictured here being modelled by a blonde woman
She posted this on Instagram after realising Shein had started selling £4 knock-offs of her set complete with a logo based on her grandfather’s signature
The £12 product was a viral success – but Shein quickly made a version for £1.75.
‘It felt like such a violation,’ she said. ‘AI doesn’t care whether you have poured your heart and soul into something. ‘
Last night, Shein said it would remove items from sale if they breached someone’s copyright, and was actively trying to reduce the number of dupes on sale.
A spokesman said: ‘It is not our intent to infringe anyone’s valid intellectual property, and it is not our business model to do so.’
Meanwhile Shein has been in talks to list on London’s ailing stock exchange for months, but former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith told the Mail that City bosses should reject the firm ‘if they have an iota of morals’.
