Before you start reading, I thought I’d just say a HUGE thank you to everyone who nominated me for the Company Style Blogger Awards! The shortlist will be revealed on Friday, so I am really excited! *Fingers Crossed* Anyway, I saw a tweet that MUA (Make-Up Academy) had ‘copied’ a top nail polish brand’s, Essie, packaging. I didn’t think it would be exactly the same, but I was wrong. MUA have completely taken the Essie bottle design and made it to their own. You might think that it’s not that big a deal, but I was shocked. They haven’t just taken the Essie design, they’ve also taken MAC’s highlighter ‘swirl’ design, as well as Clinique’s Chubby Stick design. Take a look…
Essie Bottles: As you can see the glass bottles both have the imprinted brand name, which shows you straight away that they have almost copied the product packaging. There is also a rectangle around the brand name, which is the same on both, as well as the lid being white as well. I think this is definitely ‘copied’, and I think it’s a bit ridiculous as Essie are far better quality, and to take a higher end brand’s design choice, is not on.
MAC Highlighter:The swirls in the two highlighters are very similar. Although they may not be the same, MUA have definitely taken the idea of which MAC released last year, which shows that they have taken the concept once again.
Clinique Chubby Sticks: This is the one which I am actually shocked by. The packaging is pretty much identical. The ends are both metallic, the writing is both metallic (I do admit that the MUA writing is different style), and the pencil applicator is the same shape and style. The colour choice is also very similar too.
It is not just the three above of which MUA have taken ‘inspiration’ from, it is also the Urban Decay Naked palette of which MUA have taken the same colours and put them into there palette the ‘Undressed’, which has the same meaning in the name? Naked and Undressed?! Now, I do understand that brands want to let their customers have the ‘best over the rest’, with MUA trying to make everything cheaper, but I do feel that they have made things a bit too similar. Most of their stuff has been taken from other brands, and I am starting to feel that they are just like every other brand. They are not unique any more, and I think that should change. I’m not saying that they’re products are bad, as I have tried and tested them, and they are quite good for the price, but not only are MUA taking ideas they haven’t been on the right track for a long time now. Early this year, their site was down due to so many people browsing their stock, which lead to problem with customers orders. The Customer Service team tweeted and Facebook-ed rude tweets which offended many customers, which they deleted shortly after. After this and now seeing what MUA are actually producing, my thoughts have changed with the brand. I don’t want people to read this and just see ‘HATE HATE HATE’, I want people to recognise what brands really are, and I also do realise that MUA are not the only brand that take inspiration from others, for example the Chubby Stick has been changed to suit other brands too.
Should we buying their products just because they are cheap, or should we buy it because the brand is friendly, and has a unique ethic? Make sure to leave your thoughts in a comment below…
Something very special is happening this June and July! The Posh Fashion Awards for Fashion, Beauty and Lifestyle bloggers are coming to a web browser near you…
(See what I mean about my arm?)