Stella McCartney is the latest designer to find a strikingly similar copy of one of her creations on the high street – but could you spot the couture from the cheap imitation?
The metallic Elyse shoe – a chrome-look lace-up platform brogue designed by Stella McCartney’s hand – promises eco-friendly faux leather but comes with a price tag to make one’s eyes water…£720.
However, growing high street retailer Pull&Bear, who sell their footwear on popular shopping site ASOS, have come up with a silver shoe with the same wood-effect and cream rubber sole for a fraction of the price – just £35.99.
How would you distinguish them in a line-up? Well, the Stella McCartney shoe has the traditional brogue pattern, while the Pull&Bear version eschews it.
There’s a different grain to the wood pattern but beyond that, there isn’t much between them.
The high street has consistently mimicked catwalk designs in a bid to appeal to shoppers with champagne tastes but lemonade pockets – although the copies do seem to be getting ever closer.
On Desert Island Discs recently Stella McCartney, 45, revealed how important the tailoring and design of her garments are, saying that the high price tag is justified by the quality of the goods, which will often ‘last a lifetime’.
She revealed that she learned her craft while studying at St Martin’s art school in London, spending her evenings with Savile Row tailor Edward Sexton.
She told Radio 4 presenter Kirsty Young she wanted to learn to make ‘a British suit, the best suit in the world’ and said that good tailoring is ‘intrinsic’ to her work.
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