Anifa Mvuemba, the designer behind the trendsetting and barrier-breaking luxury label Hanifa, has garnered support from followers after Fashion Nova attempted to present one of her dress concepts as their own.
The fast-fashion retailer drew renewed scrutiny for targeting the Black designer again when side-by-side photos compared their orange and blue woven Symone Sweater Maxi Dress to Hanifa’s Taliah Knit Dress.
Mvuemba’s “structured yet delicate design that prepares you to dominate every room you enter” retails for $1,098 and first appeared on the brand’s Instagram page in November 2023.
It was most recently photographed on Cardi B in September. Fashion Nova priced their copycat version at $54.99 but has since removed it from their site amid the backlash.
Two days before she began resharing tweets about the controversy, Mvuemba wrote, “Its about to be a year. Lord thank you.” Thus far, neither she nor her business have issued commentary regarding the copyright dispute. But her supporters have.
An X user blasting the popular retailer wrote, “The Venn diagram of Hanifa’s target audience (those willing to pay ~$500 per item) and fashion nova’s target audience (those willing to pay $20-$50 per item AT MOST) is 2 separate circles. Intellectual property is being stolen, potential customers are not.”
If you own a Hanifa dress you’ll know that the quality is insane but again, people don’t care about quality or ethics or sustainability. We’ve cultivated a “I see it I want it” culture when we need to be asking ourselves what buying a cheap knockoff really says about us. https://t.co/lXkN3o4JTG
— BIG DRESS ENERGY (@ShakailaElise) February 18, 2024
“As someone who owns this original Hanifa dress and constantly marvels at the quality of the Taliah knit design: I can simply look at that Fashion Nova replica and tell you that it is barely going to last you ONE wash. Knowing her business ownership story… I hate this for Anifa,” read another post.
A third user proclaimed, “I hope Anifa has been building her cases for all this theft going on. So many Hanifa designs have been stolen and re-created – fashion nova, pretty little thing, cider, shein etc.”
Some of the entrepreneur’s other creations have been worn by A-list celebrities like Beyoncé, Zendaya, Issa Rae, Tracee Ellis Ross, and supermodel Iman.
Mvuemba’s achievements include collaborating with Barbie for Harlem’s Fashion Row through Mattel, being a 2021 CFDA Fashion Awards finalist, recognition as a Future of Fashion honoree by InStyle Awards, and being hand-picked by the estate of the late Jean-Michel Basquiat for an exhibition honoring his work with dresses influenced by some of his most-recognized artwork.
Last night, @officialHanifa hosted a virtual 3D fashion show. Hanifa is a size-inclusive brand, owned by a Black woman, Anifa Mvuemba. Since we can’t have models or host a runway production, this was her solution. What do you think? #PinkLabelCongo pic.twitter.com/tC5KFoSCpG
— Asanda Sizani (@AsandaSizani) May 23, 2020
Her aesthetic blends meticulous craftsmanship with 3D technology and fashion to present collections that celebrate diversity in style, silhouette, texture, and inclusivity across bodies. Her trailblazing stance in fashion has previously made her a target of imitation.
In August 2020, the Congolese designer disrupted the industry by hosting a virtual runway show for her “PINK LABEL Congo” capsule collection, broadcast in real time with 3D models and mockups of her creations.
Her ingenuity was overshadowed when a Forbes article claimed that “deep-tech” startup Bigthinx was pioneering a new approach to fashion with its virtual show the following month.
The omission, whether deliberate or not, was interpreted as an attempt to erase Black women designers from the industry’s historical record. “To see it credited to someone else the way that it was, it was really hard. I feel like it’s just what you experience, especially being a Black creator,” Mvuemba told Business Insider Africa last April.
Only because this sample took me monthssss to perfect. This is actually crazy. I’m not going to tag or mention them. But this is crazy. pic.twitter.com/GDZQg6vTBK
— AnifaM (@AnifaM) August 29, 2022
Meanwhile, Fashion Nova has a history of lifting designs and facing criticism for their cheaply produced clothing. Fellow designers Jai Nice and Luci Wilden have also accused the company of profiting from their works in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
In August 2022, the Hanifa founder tweeted, “Only because this sample took me monthssss to perfect. This is actually crazy. I’m not going to tag or mention them. But this is crazy,” after spotting a version of her $459 Jax Knit Gown marketed at $49.99 by Fashion Nova.
“With Fashion Nova, I feel like they just don’t care—bottom line. That wasn’t the first piece they copied. But I used social media at the time to talk about it because for that piece, in particular, we spent almost two years refining that technique,” the Washington, D.C.-based creative director told the online publication.
So to witness it being ripped off, she said, felt like a direct copy, and she called them out. They removed it, which felt rewarding. But when it comes to copyright matters, winning such cases is challenging, she added.
Beyond claims of intellectual property theft, Fashion Nova has also faced a 2022 Federal Trade Commission lawsuit accusing them of blocking negative product reviews. They settled the case for a reported $4.2 million. The company was also accused of exploiting Los Angeles factory workers and owing $3.8 million in unpaid wages.
