Protecting Artist Designs: A Growing Threat from Within

At FACT Design, we exist to champion original creativity. Our mission is to elevate artists, ensuring their visions are seen, celebrated, and fairly compensated. But today, we're facing an increasingly alarming threat—not from overseas knockoff factories, but from right here at home.

Some U.S.-based competitors have begun copying our artist-driven designs, producing nearly identical work without credit or compensation. This isn't inspiration—it's theft. And it’s happening not in the shadows of distant markets, but in boardrooms just down the road.

This practice doesn't just harm our business. It undermines the very foundation of what we—and the design community—stand for: integrity, originality, and respect for creative labor. Our artists pour their ideas, time, and soul into every piece. When someone replicates that work without permission or royalties, they're not just copying a design—they're robbing an artist of their rightful income and recognition.

When Peter Dahmen created Brut or Blox, he never envisioned that one of our competitors (and now a number of our competitors) would blatently copy his originality, depriving him of rightful royalties from his inspiration. As an industry and a culture, we can, and should, do better. We can be better.

For years, the conversation around design knockoffs has focused on international manufacturing and mass-market replicas. That battle continues. But the more insidious danger now lies closer to home, where copycat practices are dressed in the disguise of legitimacy. These companies are eroding trust within the creative industry and setting a precedent that original work is fair game for anyone to take.

At FACT, we take this issue seriously. We vet our partnerships, protect our IP, and advocate fiercely for the artists we represent. But we also call on our peers across the industry: If we want a future where art and design are valued, we must hold ourselves—and each other—to higher standards.

Supporting original design isn't just good ethics—it's good business. It builds community, cultivates innovation, and creates a sustainable ecosystem where creativity can thrive.  It’s why we joined Be Original Americas.

To the artists we work with and the supporters who stand by us: thank you. Your trust is why we fight to protect every line, shape, and idea that springs from genuine creativity. And to those who would copy: we see you. And so does the industry.

Let’s protect what matters.

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FACT Design: Built by artists, for artists.
#BeOriginal #ProtectOriginalDesign #SupportArtists #DesignWithIntegrity