Exposed. An Expose on Wedding Dress Manufacturer Kanacca. Second City Style Fashion Blog

Recently Second City Style was made aware of an online store based in China that sold wedding dresses that upon first glance looked like copies of well-known, sought after and expensive designer wedding gowns. This site was selling them at a fraction of the price. Then upon second glance it appeared the photos of these gowns were taken directly from the original designers sales and marketing promotions.

I write this in the past tense because when I checked their site today their account was suspended and the site can no longer be accessed.

Kanacca Online sold dresses from 129 designer "styles." Not onlywere there Oscar de la Renta styles, Vera Wang styles, Angel Sanzhez styles, Reem Acra styles and Monique Lhuillier styles...there were styles from smaller, lesser-known designers like Vwidon of Chicago and Jane Wang in New York City. It seemed any bridal designer who has a website with photos was fair game for Kanacca.

Is it possible this site, using actual photos from the Angel Sanchez collection, was selling an actual angel Sanchez dress for $169 (with free shipping included)? Is it possible this dress was an actual Angel Sanchez? This writer thinks not.

Does the story end here? No it does not. Kanacca appears to still operate. Shanghai Kanacca Apparel Co. Ltd is another site selling their knock-off gowns as well as an Ebay store. However, they do not mention the original wedding gown designer in either of these stores. The photos are the same, but Kanacca watermarks them with their own name, as if they belong to them. Is Ebay aware that this is happening? Do they care?

The original Kanacca site (when operational) included a disclaimer that they only used photos of the branded dresses "for reference" and they would not put the brand name (designer label) on the dresses they sell. Their site also had a section detailing their "Procedure for Making  Claims of Copyright Infringement," including the address of an agent to send notices of claims for alleged copyright violations. This is not normally something you see on the websites of legitimate apparel companies.

One might therefore believe Kanacca has been called out for copyright infringement before. If someone copies someone else's design, but doesn't put their label on it, that still seems wrong. If indeed this company is "copying" these designers' hard work, how do they get away with it? I am not a lawyer, but this seems improper in the most basic sense.

Read the follow-up: "Wedding Gown Designers Are On To Kanacca. Part II"

- Lauren Dimet Waters

Update: since we published this article the Kanacca website is back up.

 

Comments

[Jonathan Bailey]

And it's back down again...

Somehow, this is very typical of sites under fire for copyright infringement...

[sarah]

Ugh can't belive how you guys ruin such a good thing!
I'm struggling with 2 jobs paying for college and this site was my dream come true!
Sure i am poor and 250 was my budget for a dress.. do i not deserve to look like a princess? They clearly state they can replicate the design for you and thats it's nto the actual designer dress... it's everywhere on the site!
I understand the laws here though. Yet these peopel are just so nice and hard working. It's not fair top designers make wedding dresses in forign countries for only 50 bucks then sell them for $4,000. If you ask me THEY are the theives.

[sarah]

I LOVE Kanacca!!!

[Princess Zippy]

"Ugh can't belive how you guys ruin such a good thing!
I'm struggling with 2 jobs paying for college and this site was my dream come true!"

You my deary, can't afford to be married - nevermind the wedding. Obviously the morality of stealing someones designs isn't a problem for you, but it's still stealing, even if you won't look like a Princess, you can always fall back on looking like an idiot. Theft is theft, someday you will understand that.

[Jonathan Bailey]

Sarah: Do you deserve to look like a princess on your wedding day? Of course! So we make it OK to steal dress designs and produce knock-offs.

Does every child deserve to read a Harry Potter book? Absolutely. So now we make books free and don't pay the author royalties.

Doesn't every teenager deserve to listen to their favorite music? Definitely! So now we make music free and don't pay the artists royalties.

It's a slippery slope, Sarah. Anytime we disrespect the intellectual property of one person, then we have to do so for all and, before we know it, no artists are getting paid for their work and no one is publishing anything because there is no financial incentive to do so.

Is it right that they make their dresses in overseas sweatshops and then sell them for thousands of dollars? No, it isn't, I agree with that. But the answer is to support dress manufacturers that either treat their labor right or have reasonable prices, not to steal.

Listen, I'm just as broke as you. I accept donations on my site and scrape by on consulting and paid blogging, if I were to get married tomorrow, $250 for a dress would be more than I could probably afford.

That doesn't make stealing right. I understand your situation I sympathize, but it does not make it acceptable.

Support legitimate dressmakers. Give your money to honest people. That will send the biggest message of all to these overpriced designers.

[Lauren - SCS]

BRAVO! Well said. I couldn't agree more. Heck, buy a $200 dress from Isaac for Target.

[Lisa Wilson]

Hi Sorry but you arewrong what about all the people out there like myself who are waiting on there wedding dress arriving in the mail, plus 2 bridesmaid dresses I paid for them some months ago and fianaly sent Kanacca the sizes friday the 10th of August!! Are you going to feed our two kids, pay our morgage, after five years you would think we could finally afford to get married in semi style.
I didn't care about the dresses being so cheep when I ordered them, maybe I should have read the fine print, but if it means my kids go with out a meal, I suppose I will have to wear my street clothes to my wedding in January!! Thanks for helping the hard up designers though I know they are short of a dollar and the prices that they charge for their dresses is all labour and materials "NOT"!!

[Shaina]

When a girl weds with her love one that day mean for her a lot and on that day she feels great and she want to wear a best wedding dress and she want that she feels great on that day because for a girl wedding day comes only one time in her life
http://www.flowergirldressforless.com

[Hard Up Designer]

Lisa & Sara:
Actually if you had any clue about the cost of real silk or real lace that is hand beaded by a highly skilled artisan in Paris, Italy, or India and then the cost of sewing gowns in the U.S., where yes these $4000 gowns are being produced (not in China) then you would understand the $4000 price tag. Not everyone can afford to drive a Mercedes just like not everyone can afford a $4000 wedding gown. That's ok. There is nothing wrong with that. It's not a constitutional right to have a $4000 wedding dress but it is a right by an artist to have their own designs protected. Maybe if you created the gown yourself and worked the many months it would probably take you to sew a designer quality wedding gown you would understand the price we charge and why we feel robbed and violated when someone steals our creations!

[Hard Up Designer]

Lisa & Sara:
Actually if you had any clue about the cost of real silk or real lace that is hand beaded by a highly skilled artisan in Paris, Italy, or India and then the cost of sewing gowns in the U.S., where yes these $4000 gowns are being produced ( not in China) then you would understand the $4000 price tag. Not everyone can afford to drive a Mercedes just like not everyone can afford a $4000 wedding gown. That's ok. There is nothing worng with that. It's not a constitutional right to have a $4000 wedding dress but it is a right by an artist to have their own designs protected. Maybe if you created the gown yourself and worked the many months it would probably take you to sew a designer quality wedding gown you would understand the price we charge and why we feel robbed and violated when someone steals our creations!

[Lisa Wilson]

Nappies, School clothes, excursions and the like must not mean anything to the people out there with nothing better to spend there money on than "brand names" thats all they are. I say as soon as any designer gets a model to strut there merchandice down a cat walk they are fare game for the average Joe to copy a bussiness, backyard dress maker even boutique shops have been buying there stock from kanacca!! Any average Australian that would pay $4000 for a wedding dress must be related to Nicole Kidman, Maybe they even know Vera Wang in person. You are a grade 1 snob and honestly one day I hope you come crashing down to the real world where the rest of us purchace our goods!! Kanacca, Over worked underpaid chinese workers that have no other way of making an income "Lets All Pick On The Small Guys", Leave the big multi nationals alone!!! Free Advertising for them anyway.. Win for them and Win for them again. You rock Kanacca! And if it wasn't them doing it it would be some one else! If you can't handle the Heat get out of the fire!!

[sarah]

Okay to anyone who thinks 4,000 is okay for a hand beaded dress... especially in the Age of technology. It better be real gold peices on that dress for it to be $4,000. The thing is Kanacca Clearly says they DON'T sell that brand name! and it's not like they take a machine that replicates that exact dress! You look at it and then you go from there. They even told me the dress is SLIGHTLY diffrent they don't guarantee the exact dress. I belive lisa's right once a trend comes out DON'T expect someone to not mimic it. I went to my florist and showed her an arrangment in a bridal magazine and asked "can you do this?" she said "sure!" this is the exact same thing! Is she doing wrong? no... And these top designers have underpaid workers just the same and even though they could sell thier dress for 4,000 they don't pay these workers any more money. Hopefully places like kanacca will force those top designers to lower prices.If they enjoy what they do they'll continue. I enjoy what i do and don't get paid a lot. Lauren HAVE YOU SEEN TARGET DRESSES they are horrible and a million other peopel have it. I feel for lisa too. I cried because i couldn't get married because i couldn't affored it we waited 3 years! and i'm sorry but if there is anytime i want to look like a princess it's my wedding day! YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE HURTING BY ATTACKING KANACCA? sure rich designers are pissed, poor babies!... WHO YOU ARE REALLY HURTING are people like me who worked 3 years to save up a few bucks for a wedding... with all the REAL issues in the world we are shedding a tear for rich designers pssh... you know WHAT I WOULD WRITE AN ARTICLE ABOUT? I would reseach how much a yard of white satin fabric is at top wholesales and how much it takes to make a size 4 dress then add up the cost and the article will let people understand where they money REALLY GOES. THEIVES

[Lisa Wilson]

Hi Sarah, you will be pleased to know that I am getting my three dresses in three weeks. Too all the fun busters out there I hope Kanacca start straight back up and make Sarah her dream dress for close to cost price!! People out there must think that every one who is in love is automatically loaded well they arn't but it doesn't mean that they should go with out just so other people can cash in on there wedding, how many other people out there feel like there wedding is costing them a fortune?? Any one else love Kanacca, they are the true innovaters!!

[sarah]

YAY LISA!
yup i ordered my dress and they've been nothing but nice and reassuring... there is also another link where there is a blog of peopel who bought dresses from kanacca and all have been satisfied! Many excited once they've recived the dress. Of course many people are worried when ordering online. With all the drug trafficing going on they go "OMG THEY ARE SELLING CHEAP DRESSES HOW DARE THEM!" See people don't see the diffrence between photocopying a book and selling it and the diffrence between showing someone a picture of a flower arrangment and asking them if they can do something like that in thier price range. ALSO for princess zippy to state i can't affored to be married? The only reason i couldn't ( but obviously am now)affored to be married is like you said... Designers and every company see's bride written on my face and they automatically charge me twice as much. I know i am not stealing i actually feel proud that i wasn't stupid enough to spend 4,000 on a dress for one day. I showed them a picture asked them if they can make something that resembles that in my budget they said sure.. and it was done. NOTICE PEOPLE RESEMBLE... as in i'm smart enough to know it's not the same dress nor the designer tag. The difference between lucky charms and marshmellow charms... taste the same looks the same but cheaper...come on people don't you get it!

[Hard Up Designer]

To all those who feel the designers are ripping them off-
Let me ask you all this? Why don't you complain that you can't buy Armani suits to wear to work or Versace gowns to your friends wedding etc? Because those are designers labels that have a different level of craftsmenship than the average clothing. Yes there are decent suits available that are not designer level quality but they will never be the same quality of a Chanel or Armani. Hence why they command such a high price. Plus these designer garments are being made w/out a lot more work and attention to detail. So without having to get into the details of how a designer gown or anything designer is made there is a HUGE difference between them and the average clothing you find in most stores. It's not about being snobby or trying to exclude anyone it's just about offering a different product for a particular consumer in the market. So instead of being mad at the designers you should ask Kanacca to keep making quality gowns at a lower price point but without piggy backing off of the hard work of another designer. Why can't Kanacca just hire designers of their own and create their own image and designs. Instead of posting stolen images from other designers to promote a product that undermines someone elses hard work. Do you think that the other designers out there just sit on their yachts and their creations magically appear on the runway and celebrities!
No!
It takes sweat and tears to get to the level of a Vera Wang.

What's next Tiffany's should start to discount diamonds so everyone on the planet can have a 3 carat diamond engaement ring just because they're getting married! Give me a break and face reality. Being in love and getting married is beautiful. Turning into a Bridzilla and demanding that you deserve everything on the planet for practically free just because you're a bride is just plain ugly.
If you're a little creative and willing to think out of the box a little there are plenty of ways to find a beautiful gown at a price within each budget. Yes the dress is important because you want to be beautiful on your wedding day but beauty & confidence radiates from within. You can be in a very simple gown but look like the most beautiful princess in the world if you feel that way on the inside. No dress from a designer is going to give that to you. The designers gown is just to help add to the beauty that should already be there from within.

[sarah]

yawn...
Discount diamonds...?
umm there are discount diamonds...
and if you want a diamond that looks like a tiffany diamond if your willing to not have that great of quality YOU CAN!

Jeeze people!

The point is kanacca is at fault for having desingers photos on the site... everyone agrees with that. Unless they put the designers name on the dress or say it's from that designer there is nothing the law can do. You guys can whine all you want.

When you put yourself out their and peopel like what you are doing expect others to copy many artists face this.

Designers Put thier name on a 2 dollar t-shirt and sell it for $40. I know this for a fact!

If people want the real thing with the exact quality then buy from the actual designer.

Confidence means a lot but clothing can help gain confidence. Ever see those make-over shows where good people have a shot at looking great? They were good people but clothing helped them. I didn't feel right in the simple white dress's it just wasn't me... My whole life i've been walmart clothing and simple t-shirt and jeans...

i also have a weird body type so any dress i got i needed to alter and everyone knows how expensive that is! so i definitly needed something made just for me. My whole life i've thought of everyone but myself. So sue me if my wedding day i want it to be perfect.

In the end whether designers like it or not you may have pictures that belong to you and names but if someone wants a dress that looks like another...and someone else makes it for them THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO...

NOTHING

N O T H I N G

they aren't doing anything wrong there. It's not legally stealing. So designers can whine or get over it.

[sarah]

AND YES i do agree kanacca messed up by actually putting up photos of other designers on the site.

I belive what kanacca is doing it great for poor brides who want nice dresses at great prices!

But even though most won't even agree with this... Many sites have a place where they say they can make a dress as your liking... and then you can send them ideas

[upi]

My experience at the bridal shops was this: I am plus-size, so there were very few samples I could try on. Sometimes a clerk would hold a size 8 dress in front of me so I could get an idea of what the dress would look like, but that was less than helpful, and a little insulting. So I would have to order a dress that would cost a minimum of $800 that I couldn't even try on. If I wanted it in less than 14 weeks, I would have to pay a rush fee. If I wanted sleeves (which I do, and unfortunately 90% of the dresses are strapless now) that would be another fee. I would have to pay another fee to have the sleeves sewn on. Also there would be an extra fee for being plus-size. I tried David's Bridal--they have some plus sizes but I wasn't happy with any of the dresses I found there. So I went the Chinese knockoff route, because they could make the dress I wanted with no extra fees. I have ordered three from three different manufacturers and I'll sell the two I don't wear at a local consignment shop. Apparently, they can't keep the plus sized dresses in stock because there is high demand but short supply. I would have bought a genuine designer dress in a local shop if I could have found a style I liked and could try on. So designers and bridal shop owners, you may want to reconsider who your clientele might be. Many brides I know, even those who are not plus size, want dresses that are flattering and have sleeves, especially if they are over 30. Very few people look good in a strapless dress. Please don't keep foisting styles on us as though all your brides are petite and young. The older ones like me have money to pay if we could find someone to accommodate us.

Also a note about designer quality. Some designer labels do signify good quality, and others just signify the name and that's all. My fiance works in the men's clothing industry and he says they sell the exact same suits at S&K as at the posh men's shops. The same suit that goes for $2000 at the posh shops can be had at S&K for $600. The same cloth, the same construction, the same manufacturer, often even the same label. The posh shops have their own label making machine--they cut the labels out of the cheaper suits and put their own labels in and mark the price up by $1000 or more. Sometimes the designer suits are of cheaper quality but higher price than the lesser-name brands. These practices are pretty typical. Once a designer is established, he or she is trading on their name, and if the customer is willing to pay for the name, that is their choice, but it may not mean they are getting anything special.

[bride bettie]

Hi, I just had to chime in to the person who said that $4K dresses are handmade in Europe and not China. That's super funny. Actually, they are manufactured in China and the final touches are done in Europe just so they can say "made in Italy" or what have you. $4K for a wedding dress is a crime. And the plus size bride also made a valid point. Just my two cents!

[sarah]

FOR THE PEOPLE THAT JUST DON'T GET IT...

There is laws against using a copyrighted name and selling a shirt WITH that name on it... because your fooling the public by saying your that designer...

THERE IS NO LAW AGAINST RESEMBLING SOMETHING.

Vera wang- Lucky charms... famous
expensive...

Kanacca- Marshmallow Magic!... cheap good looks the same... but not as famous

Is it stealing there? IS EVERY MOM OTU THERE SAVING A COUPLE BUCKS A BOX OF CEREAL STEALING?
OMG where are we going to lock these horrible criminals up! lol

It's not against the law people...
So go ahead... and let these hard working moms have thier Marshmallow magic..

I got this from :
http://adweek.blogs.com/adfreak/2005/week28/index.html

"But before you go shelling out the extra dough (and at Cereality that's not just a reference to food product—it’s nearly four bucks for a bowl for a NAME BRAND), be sure to check out some of the knockoffs you can get for a fraction of the price. A helpful guide can be found at the Cheap-Ass Cereal Hall-of-Fame, which will educate you on cereal varieties such as Silly Circles (i.e., Froot Loops) Apple Yos (a hip-hop version of Apple Jacks) and Marshmallow Magic (Lucky Charms). However, if you’re a Harvard student, no need to visit the site. As we’ve already reported, you’re probably already familiar with these brands."

WOW... APPARENTLY MILLIONS OF MOMS EVERYWHERE ARE STEALING...

no reason to bring down kanacca...
tons of companies do the same and Completly legal..

[Princess Zippy]

Sorry so many of the Brides to be are upset, but you can't afford to get married unless you steal by way of using a company that is paying child and/or women who are paid pennies a day in sweat shops to make the knock offs. CHILDREN AND WOMEN are victims - so when you wear your lovely knockoffs remember the 14 hour work days the 6 year old worked to make your "special" day "special". You are buying from people who think nothing of using others ideas, and victimizing poverty stricken workers. Yes, you certainly will be lovely brides. But very ugly people. Karma.

And, no you can't afford to have a big semi formal wedding if you have to buy a knock off. You are delusional if you think you can afford a wedding at others expense. Who raised you dishonorable people?

[sarah]

OMG zippy have you been to honduras factories?

http://www.shopwildthings.com/clgecu.html
I've been there... talked to the people!
I've seen them work... i've seen

Designer jeans/ shirts are made there DESIGNER CLOTHING... and they pay pennies to people... about 2 bucks an hour

designers use these same factories... designer shoes, designer jeans, designer clothing....
and even though they are paying these workers nothing! they STILL charge a ton of money for thier clothing....

YOU OBVIOUSLY haven't been to a third world country have you?...

i USED TO be against these factories... but when i went to villanueva honduras i realized how much poverty there way in that town many years ago...
Mothers and children lived in mud houses... lots of kids would die!... Then this famerican factory was made rigth in front of them... THOUSANDS OF MOMS and fathers lined up to this factory... to get jobs! ( no children) PEOPLE WERE HAPPY... they coudl affored food... a place to live.. there was jobs!
now a couple years later you see no more mud houses... no more kids playing in dirty places.. you see paved roads... real houses!...
you see moms being able to work for thier children...
ask them what they feel about this factory!

WHAT MAKES ME SAD is how designers are able to sell these cheaply made clothing (and i know they are desiger stuff) for TONS OF MONEY... and they don't bother to pay the people of villa nueva more money...

I dare not even say to these peopel how much that nike shoe... or calvin clain shirt goes for in the usa...

I've been out of the box people... i've traveled i've seen...
I've learned...
I've spoken to...
I've been from Canada to japan
from New york to brazil...

I've been to honduras , guatemala,
puerto rico,
i've been to japan
( although not egypt yet... dying to go)
My father had to travel

Don't dare speak of something you have no clue about.. you don't know if kids work there... you don't know how happy these moms are to be able to support thier families when a husband is not around or dead...
Kanacca employees aren't forced to be there... mroe than likey they need these jobs to survive...

I suggest you visit honuras one day...

[sarah]

SORRY GAVE THE WRONG LINK ABOVE...!

this is a honduras factory link! http://www.zipvillanueva.com/

[sarah]

http://www.zipvillanueva.com/

wow DEIGNER FACTORIES PAY WORKERS sometimes less than 1 dollar an hour...
really worth that $50 dollar designer shirt you buy at macy right?
Next time you buy a designer shirt or pair of deigner pants look at the lable...

Me and my mom laugh because we'll see this expensive deigner shorts and realize the label says "honduras"...
and we know this pair of pants took no more than
$1 in labor and maybe 4 bucks in material...

STILL don't see where these retail prices come from...
and it's not expensive to ship...

My mom and my church go once a year to distribute used clothing to the people of villanueva and it costs us very little to bring hundreds of bags of clothing to them...

NOW YOU SEE WHY I AM SO SAD!...i am crying right now...
designers are making thousands off these hard working people.
they make your precious nikes your precious designer bags...
they make them for you!...
and it wouldn't hurt so much if they priced them
fairly... but they don't...THE UPMARKING IS INCREDIBLE!

Wether a designer sells a shirt,dress or pant for $40 dollar or $500
these workers don't get paid anymore money

and whats also sad is these factories are all these people have for jobs...

I DESPISE DESIGNERS...

[a.]

If you despise designers so much, why buy an imitation designer gown? I don't understand why you insist on appearing to wear a designer gown when apparently you think designers are evil. If I disliked the practice of a company, I'd rather not appear to endorse that company...

Also, it is true that mega-corporations who own many 'luxury' brands have lowered quality, while inflating prices, in order to increase the bottom line and satisfy investors. This is the unfortunate direction our wonderful capitalist system is taking us. However, there are many, many smaller designers who work 24/7 running thier business, who are operating outside that system. It requires an incredible amount of work to create a line. I know an emerging designer who works, hands-on, on each new design for literally months, constantly tweaking until everything is *perfect* (her designs are really unique). After paying for her assistant, rent and utilities, *local* manufacturer, materials and supplies, equipment, pr, marketing, etc., she doesn't make ANY money. And her stuff seems fairly pricey - but it's very expensive to run a small business. She would be devastated if some company took her designs... not only devastated, but bankrupt.

Additionally, at high end retailers really, really, jack the price up. These are not sliver-thin Wal-mart margins that work because of the vast quantity of products sold. Higher-end items are marked up by retailers 300% or more; the designer can't really control that.