Shein just counterfeited a Stussy t-shirt

That Shein blindly copies and duplicates the designs of others and then resells them at bargain prices is by now a well-known fact and there are already many independent designers who have accused the mysterious Chinese giant of stealing their trademarks. But this time Shein has made a powerful enemy. A few days ago the brand of ultra fast fashion has in fact put on sale a black t-shirt decorated with the Stussy name and the number eight in a graphic that traces that of the famous Hockey Jersey of the real (and only) Stussy. Obviously Stussy has not waited for his answer and sued Shein for counterfeiting and trademark infringement - a case that will not be complicated to win considering how the t-shirt in question imitates the name of the brand, counterfeiting it beyond any conceivable doubt. To these accusations are added the capital sin of brand dilution and unfair competition. According to Stussy, in fact, Shein would have counterfeited its products «for the purpose of causing confusion and diverting customers». 

Stussy continued his argument by describing its own business model: that of «an exclusive brand with limited distribution» which creates a demand from the public larger than the brand's supply - thus generating an empty space in the market that, according to the brand, Shein wants to fill with its fakes. Stussy therefore wants to take away Shein's profits from the sale of the offending t-shirt, but also prevent it from playing the same game in the future. Of course, Shein's spokespeople have yet to be heard. The case goes to enrich the thread of counterfeiting, legal or not, in the world of streetwear: that of Supreme is the most famous and complicated case, with two European companies that thanks to a legal trick have managed to build a small business empire based entirely on a completely declared and obvious forgery. In that case, however, even after many years, Supreme won. 

This episode, then, among the many that involve Shein (and that have not even spared Maison Margiela's Tabi Boots) shows the blind voracity with which the Chinese brand absorbs and literally imitates everything else. In fact, one could come to understand the hope of counterfeiting the works of an independent designer little known to the general public, but it is absurd to believe that one can create a t-shirt with the logo of a famous brand, widespread for decades all over the world, without incurring consequences. Before we even think about the more serious sides of the very problematic Chinese titan (perhaps the most problematic brand in the world?), one has to wonder who was the single individual who thought to write the word Stussy on a t-shirt and sell it in a huge online marketplace around the world. Whoever it is should be promoted immediately or fired on the spot: promoted if his choice was made for audacity, fired if it was simple obtuseness. By the way on Shein's site the address of the page is still there if you search it by Google but the product page is mysteriously absent.