My DWR purchased Philippe Starck designed Louis Ghost Armchair is placed next to a vintage Heywood Wakefield Penthouse dresser in the bedroom of my Hollywood Hills cottage (above)
Photo by Coco of Cococozy
I won’t even wax poetic about this one…
I am annoyed.
(or at least leaning toward the annoyed end of the mood spectrum)
I have two clear Design Within Reach (DWR)-purchased crystal Philippe Starck Louis Ghost Armchairs in my bedroom (as seen in these photos). I decided against upholstered armchairs in my room because my house is so small. I thought I was being extremely clever and space conscious by using see-through chairs which provide seating but give the illusion of taking up absolutely no space. I also liked the fact that the chairs came from the chic DWR store here on Beverly Blvd in Los Angeles.
Well, I don’t feel clever anymore. When I got an email from Modern Dose saying they had a knock off at nearly half the price, my jaw nearly dropped onto my laptop computer.
Questions: Does a cheaper knock off take away the cache of my chairs? Does it make my chairs feel a little less special?
Thoughts?
I may have to dump mine or use them out on my deck now. So much for clever modernism…now that these chairs have been so perfectly knocked off, I may have to go back to staid traditionalism and find some unique upholstered chairs that cannot be knocked off!
To those of you who have wanted these chairs, but price was an issue…here you go…they are all yours. (Do I sound bitter? Not meant to be…really not bitter at all…really…not bitter…really…kind of…not really)
DWR – Louis Ghost Armchair – $410 (My crystal clear polycarbonate Louis XV chair designed by Philippe Starck for Kartell (2002))(above)
Photo by Coco of Cococozy
Modern Dose – Louis Ghost Style Armchair – $265 (Acrylic knock off chair comes in transparent and other colors) (above)
P.S. Good for Modern Dose though for being smart enough to knock off and sell a chair that has become a new furniture classic. Must give Modern Dose props for that!
You know yours are real and thats ALL that matters 🙂
not everyone has deep pockets, so i have no problem with knock offs if they are done well. i believe “good” design should be accessible to every day people. i believe that is what the Eames’ were originally trying to accomplish.
Do you remember the Sex and the City episode where Carrie decided she would never carry a knock off purse because it wasn’t the real thing, and she did not want to be the kind of person who did not have the real thing? Just think of that when you look at your beautiful chair.
Oh my goodness!! Hm… about knock-offs in general… I think the thing is, if you really love the piece for what it is then you will still love it once it’s been knocked off.
I think it’s great that things can become more accessible to people, but yes, it’s really annoying when you pay so much for something.
BUT are you paying for the product itself or the name/ status/ idea? If that’s the case, then you’d want the real thing. If you want the look, then why not go for the knock-off if there’s no real difference in quality?
great post!! and I think the chair looks amazing where you have it!!!
They are not the first to knock off this chair, I even think overstock.com (gasp) has some. I love the design, and although they look very similar I always wonder about the thickness of the lucite on the knockoffs – To me that is a dead giveaway – the thicker the richer looking. But the CB2 acrylic waterfall coffee table is almost 1″ and a great price!
If you sell, let me know!!
CSS
I’M annoyed. in this economy (or any for that matter), the real one should cost what the knockster does!!
I recently bought four for my dining room. For me, from a design perspective, the original is king. Yes, a knock off can achieve the look, but I think if you really love the design and concept it is more than worth it, exactly as it was conceived by its designer. My table was $50 bucks at Ikea; it’s all about highs and lows. Enjoy your chairs!
These chairs are cute, knockoff or not, but I predict to see about 100,000 of them in thrift stores five years from now. Then they’ll be even cheaper for people who truly like them!
I think your chairs look great as you’ve placed them. But yes if you plan to sell, please let me know!!
I think your chairs look great as you’ve placed them. But yes, if you decide to get rid of them please let me know!!
with any knock-offs, it may photograph well but i am sure in person…it is obvious and, surely, not as special as your originals. these chairs have actually been knocked off for years. Just like the Barcelona couch that I have always wanted (and DWR has a really nice one) a million websites/companies knock them off for all different prices and they are definitely NOT all created equal.
I totally understand where you’re coming from, but they’re great chairs, nonetheless. Good design is good design – no matter what the price.
I know people won’t agree with this statement, especially because we are one of the companies that sell the reproduction chairs, but the original designers like Eames of these types of furniture designed them with the goal in mind of bringing these products to the masses at what are reasonable prices. DWR and Knoll and companies like that are not fulfilling the original designers goals.
Also, think about what an original design means. It means it is designed and produced by the designers and issued to the public by the designers. Just like buying an original Monet is buying a painting that was done by Monet, buying a Eames chair is buying a chair done by Ray & Charles Eames. Companies like Knoll and DWR are taking the original design and just reproducing it so that it conforms to the original design. How is this different than any other manufacturer taking the design and reproducing it?
I know this is a contentious debate and we’re open to hearing others’ view on it. We’re just here trying to bring cool, modern furniture to the public at reasonable prices.
Thanks for your time.
Sincerely,
Mike
Sexy Furnishings, LLC
Where modern meets sexyTM
http://www.sexyfurnishings.com
If you like it, that’s all that matters!
Mike, I think the main differences between different companies reproducing the design is that generally, the licences manufacturer pays a royalty to the designer or designer’s estate. Eames worked for Herman Miller (the original manufacturer for most Eames chairs) so the designs are the intellectual property of H.M. The same is the case with Knoll, Inc. and Risom, Florence Knoll, etc. When you a product from these companies you essentially make an investment in that company. HM & Knoll make most of their money in office products, however they continue to make and promote the classics. These products are part of America’s design history and I hope they continue to produce them for years.
I’ve been eyeing these chairs on Overstock and other sites, now about one-quarter the original ghost chair price. To the first person with the great design idea go the spoils, but only for a limited time.
Hi,
Interesting blog and comment on designer items in general.
My company actually make a great polycarbonate knock-off of the ghost chair and only an absolute expert can tell the difference. If you know any people or companies that might be interested in buying these by the container load we sell them for US$70.00 each. There are cheaper ones but they do have mould flaws and other probs. Actually, i need an agent in the US if you know someone in the furniture biz!!
all the best from Australia ( Dee: [email protected] )
Really you should buy the copies if you cannot afford the real thing from the original manufacturer and do not intend to actually use them to sit on….The fact that they are made from acrylic instead of polycarbonate only means that
(1) they will sctatch easier,
(2) cannot support as much weight,
(3) are MUCH cheaper and easier to make and
(4) you will be able to replace them sooner when you tire of them.
You won’t have to worry about seeing them in a thrift store because they will not last that long to make it there. Yes assume they are completely disposable and well worth the $265.00 investment. They Kartell original Louis Ghost chairs are a new interpretation of a classic design – pure techonolgy and industrial design (not particularly creative)- and these acrylic versions are something which will make the importer from China beaucoup bucks!
Seriously, I can’t even believe you would even think of putting the real thing on your deck just because they make knock-offs. What are you thinking? Good for you that you can even afford the real thing. Be thankful!!!
Listen to Anon June 24, 2009 – the chair you love wouldn’t exist w/o the original designer. If you really love interior design (and by your site, you claim to) then you should buy the real thing and support the company/artist who created the design you love. Other than saving a few hundred dollars, what good does it do to buy the knock-off? There would be no more new design or continuing design if the designers weren’t paid. I understand that you might not have considered this when you wrote your post, but now that you know, you can’t pretend that you aren’t harming the design community by purchasing the knock-off.