It began as a small storefront in Manhattan’s Nolita neighborhood, featuring cardigans and tunics in vibrant hues of tangerine, turquoise, and nautical patterns inspired by summers spent on the northern beaches of Nantucket and Southampton. Tory Burch is now one of the most popular and recognizable designer brands in the high-fashion world. In an op-ed featured in Vanity Fair, Victoria Grigoriadis stated, “no other woman of [Burch’s] generation has created a more powerful brand.” The “look at me” colors, distinctive “double T” Tory Burch crest, and modern preppy flare were all “unmistakably Tory” until the controversial development of C.Wonder by Tory’s ex-husband, Chris Burch, a co-founder of the Tory Burch enterprise.
In an interview with New York Magazine, Chris Burch, a known venture capitalist, claims that “C. Wonder is a realization of a long-held dream to provide low-to-mid price retail in a luxury setting.” Burch says he never had any intention to mirror the style of his ex-wife’s coveted and wildly successful brand; he was simply expressing his desire to “deliver brightness to every corner of life” by catering to a mass consumer group. However, the tunics, C.Wonder logo, buttons on sweaters, accessories, bright green interior of the store, and plastic ballet flats seem to resemble Tory Burch’s signature pieces a little too closely, only at a much more affordable price. C.Wonder features enamel bangle bracelets for $48 that are similar to those found in the Tory Burch stores for $95.
Although Chris Burch claims in New York Magazine that his “aesthetic has always been preppy,” Tory Burch and her team feel that C.Wonder is not a product of Mr. Burch’s “preppy aesthetic” but instead a violation of intellectual property rights. “Chris has plagiarized the DNA of the Tory Burch brand” said Tamara Mellon, co-founder of Jimmy Choo, in an interview with Vanity Fair. What concerns these fashion insiders the most about the blatant similarities between the two brands is that it will create confusion among consumer bases, causing customers to link the brands together. As a New York Magazine writer noted,“The design and layout seems like a deliberate attempt by [Tory’s] ex-husband to confuse the consumer into thinking the brands are associated.”
This is not the first time Chris Burch has designed a lower priced clothing line similar to Tory Burch, causing people to further question his motives in creating C.Wonder. New York Magazine reported that when Tory Burch first became popular in 2003, Chris Burch was working behind the scenes on his own line, Winter & Miggs, which used the same factories as Tory Burch to produce similar designs. While Winter & Miggs never took off, it is speculated that it was a lower priced brand created by Chris in case Tory Burch did not succeed. In addition, Tory Burch is not the only high-priced and revered designer that fashion insiders think Chris is copying through C.Wonder. As observed by New York Times fashion blogger, Alexandra Jacobs, many of Chris’s designs seem to be knock off versions of luxury brands like Kate Spade and Longchamp.
The question remains: will consumers remain loyal to Tory Burch or become C.Wonder customers? Alexandra Jacobs ventured to C.Wonder to see for herself. While “the trellis-printed red lining” of the coat Jacobs tried on “was silky, dreamy,” she counters that “no amount of fancy atmospherics could make me look good in the navy peacoat I tried.” While C.Wonder is more affordable, accessible, and caters to a larger consumer base, the products do not compare to the softness of a Tory Burch cashmere cardigan or the comfort of the signature flat.
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