It’s been awhile since I posted a thread, but I felt this one needed to be posted, since it kind of hits home with me.
We have discussed surf shops or other craftsmen stealing someone else’s designs in surfboards before, but what about something like a fins which is a unique shape thought up by the designer and put out on the market under his name?
I use this example because there is a surf shop in California that has ripped off Mccoy’s gullwings surfboard fin designs and some other Mccoy designs and is marketing them. To rub salt in a little deeper they are even using Geoff’s name to sell them. I would call them out, but I don’t want to give them any more publicity on it than they already have. The problem with this type of thief is they know a lawsuit is not likely as the cost would not be worth the trouble to sue. Yes…it’s partially an issue for me because I have marketed and sold “real” Mccoy products for a few years, but I got to tell you it’s mostly been because I believe in Geoff’s designs and outlook on surfing in general and not about the money. I have a day job.
This is not the only incident of Geoff having his products ripped off without being given money or even the credit for a design. I would say the Lazor Zap was one of the most copied surfboards during the late seventies and early eighties and even the modern surfboard outline is Geoff’s planshape. That planshape actually changed surfings performance history along with Simon putting three fins on them.
Were someone to approach Geoff with a legitimate business deal and offer to make the fins and pay him a royalty then maybe Geoff would do something different than he is already, but to simply take something very unique like Geoff’s gullwing fins and steal them them for your department store surf shop makes you a skunk.
The sad thing is this has been the way of our industry for years. Shop owners always looking for the next lie to sell or shapers who can’t cut the mustard in design… steal something from someone else and market as their own. Look at one of the popout companies; they create molds for certain shapers and if that shapers quits the program they take his molds and sell or give them to one of their distributors to use with their own label. If that does not work the shop owner finds a shapers design he likes…buys one…has it molded…puts his name on the stringer and in ads and sells it as…his design. Some of this stuff is not simply old designs everyone has copied, but brand new designs or designs unique to certain shapers. It’s not one shaper making by hand his version of a design (which I don’t really have an issue with per say) but making an actual copy of someone’s design and taking credit for it themselves.
Surfing is one of those sports where many brag and overestimate their ability or find some importance about associating with those of greater ability in surfing or designing. It’s one of the few where novice participants can actually get away with this without much ridicule…so I guess thats why some have the need to take from those of greater talent and ability and try and associate themselves with it instead of forging their own unique path as Geoff has done.
We have gone from a sport of kings to a sport of punks for way too many. Those that make this sport unique in the area of design remain in the minority and will probably never get the proper credit or money for their efforts.
If the goal is to let the infringing party know that you are aware of their actions, and think that you are in contact with a lawyer, this tactic can be effective - I’ve used it. It’s considerably cheaper than paying a law firm $400-500 to have a $20 per hour paralegal clerk write one.