A code of honour
Engagement rings tend to be copied most often, Purdy says. They are usually the first important piece of jewellery a consumer buys, and the one they’ll be looking to pick up for the least amount of money. While she agrees branding can help protect against copying to a certain extent, part of the answer lies within the industry itself.
“I think some jewellery designers do have a code of honour—the ones that have their own looks and style and work toward branding,” she says. “These are the inspired and creative ones. Their priority is to make their artistic marks. The lowest price, fast sale, and an attitude of being able to custom-make virtually any ring design turns it into a commodity.”
Steve Parker, owner of Customgold Manufacturing Ltd., in Vancouver, agrees copying is widespread but adds a formal code of honour would have little meaning.
“There is always an element in our industry that will do anything for money,” he explains.
Parker says his work and those of his design team have been copied, and while his reaction was partly one of being flattered to a certain extent, he is quick to point out the piece was of lesser quality. Like Myerson, he’s seen his designs walk many times, only to have the client unhappy with the results and asking Parker to create the piece himself. He sees it as karma.
“I think the marketplace sorts those things out,” he says. “In the end, I think it comes around. The customer doesn’t like the piece and the one who produced it loses a client.”
To better protect itself and its clients, Customgold uses a log-in feature on its website, preventing others from viewing designs.
“By doing this, those who support us and invest in our designs don’t need to worry about an unscrupulous competitor ‘stealing their sale’ by simply copying [a piece] from our website,” he adds.
Yet, in an industry that promotes itself as artistic and innovative, does the prevalence of copying diminish that? Parker doesn’t think so.
“I think there are great designers and great leaders in design, but that doesn’t necessarily mean every goldsmith out there is a great designer,” he explains. “They might just be able to construct the product and need to look elsewhere for designs, and unfortunately, that’s often someone else’s work.”
Is there a point where enough is enough?
“If someone directly copied my designs to the ‘T’ with quality etc., and with my hallmark, that would be the breaking point and I would consider taking legal action,” Arkarakas adds.
Aside from the costs of pursuing a copyright infringement case, the fact is, by the time it gets to court, trends may have changed and the design may not be as relevant as it once was. Yet, the time and effort that goes into creating an original design can be substantial, making copying a bee that stings nonetheless.
