Source: Foot Locker / Foot Locker
Even with Converse officially under the Nike umbrella, the brand that introduced the classic Chuck Taylor to the world of fashion isn’t exactly considered must-have attired. But would they resort to stealing ideas to get things poppin’ for themselves?
The New York Post is reporting that up and coming designer Cecilia Monge is claiming that Converse juxed a silhouette design she presented to the company in a rejected internship application she submitted in 2019. In a TikTok video posted this past Saturday, Monge explained her side of the story and she felt that one of Converse’s latest drops bore an uncanny resemblance to the design she submitted two years ago.
TikTok viewers agreed.
Her original “National Park” inspired design featured colorways that you’d find on the colorful leaves on the trees in the park. So when Converse released their Unisex Converse Chuck 70 National Parks High Top in Red Bark, Cecilia felt the jig was amongst her.
Though on their site said they too were inspired by “vistas of national parks,” Monge feels she was the victim of the jig and is calling them out for their alleged thieving ways.
But that’s not the only instance in which Monge says her idea was stolen.
“Another one of Monge’s submissions, dubbed “Yellowstone” due to its geothermal-themed color pattern, also has a Converse doppelganger, which looks similar to hers down to “the order of the colors and the actual hues,” she fumed. Neither of the designs are available on the shoe brand’s US website, but can be purchased in Australia.”
It’s not looking good for Converse right now. Though they do acknowledge that Cecilia Monge applied for an internship there, they deny stealing her designs and in a statement explained that “As a matter of standard legal policy, we do not share unsolicited portfolios of job applicants across the business.”
With Monge’s videos already having been seen over 9 million times, people have begun to chime in and called out Converse for apparently stealing from people just trying to find a way into the sneaker game.
Converse might have to hire her to quiet the outrage at this point. Peep her receipts below.
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