Amid the launch of her new clothing company Khy, Kylie Jenner has been accused of stealing work from artist Betsy Johnson (not to be confused with American designer Betsey Johnson).
For context, Kylie announced her new clothing brand earlier this week, which includes 13 pieces — including faux leather dresses and coats — between $48-198. The first drop is original designs made with the brand Namilia, a brand founded in 2015 which heavily uses leather. “The whole line is really inspired by my personal wardrobe, and the different moods that I’m in,” Kylie told the WSJ Magazine.
Meanwhile, Betsy is a Grimsby-born creative director, consultant, and stylist. She has previously walked the Balenciaga red carpet, oversaw a YEEZY Gap campaign, and appeared on a Playboi Carti album cover.
Her recently-announced line, PRODUCTS, has been met with positive reviews and centers around a limited collection made with Giaborghini and UY Studio. Each piece is monochrome and heavily features black leather coats with distinct silhouettes. It explicitly plays with the idea of class, with Betsy telling Hypebeast in September, “Fashion for the last eight years: the rich wanting to look poor, adopting all the tropes of working-class life but never knowing the true extent of how it feels to really stress about your bills.”
“What if fashion became a place where the rich really looked rich? It was this frustration that became the starting point for this project its more of a curated visual essay through products,” she continued.
Yesterday, Betsy took to her Instagram to share a message she had received asking, “Why is the caption giving me PRODUCTS ltd concept teas?”
Betsy then shared a caption from the Financial Times’ summary of Khy along with a series of middle fingers:
She then alleged, “We emailed Kylie and all her team PRODUCTS ltd. concept and language and a line sheet SIX MONTHS AGO. INTERESTING CONCEPT KYLIE:..INTERESTING. Thanks for the co-sign.”
A line sheet is basically a document which contains images of every product and a description about their cost (both wholesale and suggested retail), materials, etc. It’s usually a document used for fashion buyers.
Betsy Johnson / Via Instagram: @betsyjohnson_
She also called out Namilia, calling it a “trash move.”
She then shared an image of her student loans, continuing, “Worked my ass off for this. Like so many other working class kids who bust their ass for expertise they weren’t born into to release their ideas.”
Sources familiar with Kylie’s brand told BuzzFeed that Kylie is “looking forward” to partnering Khy with more designers and “bringing beautiful original designs” with said brand’s aesthetics to people.
BuzzFeed has reached out to representatives for Kylie, Namilia, and PRODUCTS for comment.
