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Posted: 2023-10-20 06:25:18

If you don't know who Matilda Djerf is, the Swedish influencer is known for her signature blow-wave hair and minimal Scandinavian style. 

She's also huge on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, where she's cultivated an impressive following of over 4 million. 

A woman with blonde hair and tanned skin and nice hair in front of park with black sunglasses on

Swedish influencer Matilda Djerf has experienced great success off the back of her clothing brand, Djerf Avenue. (Supplied: Instagram @djerfavenue)

On the back of this huge audience she and her partner, Rasmus Johansson, launched the clothing label Djerf Avenue in 2019. 

Since then, the label has taken off — with Forbes reporting that the Swedish-based label made $US34.5 million (54.6 million) in revenue last year. 

But in recent weeks Djerf Avenue, and Djerf herself, have encountered backlash online — with content creators with smaller audiences claiming that the company is filing copyright strikes against them for promoting clothing that is similar to Djerf Avenue's products. 

The backlash has been so severe that Djerf recently deactivated her TikTok account in the midst of the storm. 

So what's actually going on?

A fashion storm  

"So I just woke up to this, which is a trademark warning from Matilda Djerf," Aliya Sumar told her followers in a TikTok video earlier this month. 

And she's not alone, with other users claiming that Djerf's company were reporting their videos to TikTok as trademark violations. 

TikTok states on its website that its terms of service and community guidelines "do not allow posting, sharing, or sending any content that violates or infringes upon another party’s copyrights, trademarks or other intellectual property (IP) rights". 

In the first of two videos that Sumar received warnings for, she was reviewing a "dupe" (short for duplicates) of the Djerf Avenue pyjamas with a summer fruit print. 

An indian woman with a screenshot behind her.

Aliyah Sumar shared her experience with Djerf Avenue on TikTok. (Supplied: TikTok @sumarslays)

These pyjamas, and their print, appear to be attracting the most amount of attention in the controversy. 

The pyjamas that Aliya was reviewing in her video were dupes of the Djerf Avenue pyjamas, available on Amazon for a cheaper price.

Other content creators have spoken out since about the warnings they've received. 

Claims are 'devastating' 

Users on the platform have expressed their disappointment in Djerf Avenue's actions, claiming that the trademark claims on their videos prohibit content creators with smaller audiences from reaching new audiences. 

TikTok content creator Isabela Karwatowicz also received a trademark warning from TikTok via Djerf Avenue and said in a video that it was "devastating". 

"I am trying to gain a following and make this a part-time thing that I can do, and because of these copyright claims, my videos are no longer being pushed out," she explained. 

Djerf Avenue has since issued a statement via the label's social media accounts explaining that there has been a recent surge in "websites selling products with our design and owned prints/artworks". 

"In light of this, and to safeguard our prints and the individual print designers — we have an external intellectual property firm monitoring copyright infringements," it read. 

A pair of pyjamas with fruit print hang on a hanger

The pyjamas that sparked a copyright controversy for Djerf Avenue. (Supplied: Instagram @djerfavenue)

While the brand didn't apologise to users, they did state that they realised their actions had "inadvertently impacted individual accounts". 

They added in their statement that they will instruct their IP firm to "halt reports on individual accounts and focus on third-party sellers". 

Djerf hasn't spoken publicly about the backlash. 

The rise of the dupe

The Djerf Avenue controversy sheds light on the complex world of dupes in the fashion industry and what the legal implications are. 

Dupes have become popular online in recent years, allowing consumers to duplicate an expensive look for less. 

They are products that look the same as a more expensive product, without the branding or logo. 

Professor Kimberlee Weatherall from the University of Sydney is a researcher with a focus on technology regulation and intellectual property (IP) law. 

She explains that while most dupe items are in fact legal (as long as they don't replicate brands or logos) the law surrounding them isn't black and white. 

"Some dupes are legal, but some dupes are actually just counterfeit products."

She added that the validity of a trademark infringement claim will rely on the individual case. 

In the case of Djerf Avenue, the claims being made specify the owned prints and artwork that can be protected by copyright. 

Professor Kimberlee Weatherall

Professor Kimberlee Weatherall said it can be complicated when it comes to fashion and intellectual property laws. (Supplied)

"The thing about copyright is that it doesn't need registration and arises automatically and globally," Professor Weatherall said. 

It means that in this instance, Djerf Avenue would be right to claim a copyright infringement if their owned artwork was applied to another product that they didn't sell. 

Professor Weatherall added that while dupes on their own may be legal, if a dupe used artwork or design protected by copyright, then it could be a different story. 

"It's unlikely that there are any existing rights on a common fashion item like a trench coat for instance, because it's not a new design.

"In that kind of context there is probably no other legal rights," she said. 

While legally Djerf Avenue may be in the right when it comes to issuing trademark infringements, their approach via TikTok has certainly appeared to rub Matilda Djerf fans the wrong way. 

Professor Weatherall said the controversy is a lesson in how big companies can protect their copyright, without angering their fans. 

"It's about education and strategy, and something that companies really need to think about when they're enforcing their rights," she said.

"There are ways to go about enforcement that don't involve sending in the IP lawyers," she said.

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