Yet another stolen photo. Uggh

[Canuck]

Here's the thing. There are many local retailers who sell kilts made in Pakistan that have poached designs from kilt makers like myself. British Isles trading company in Ajax and Kingston is one of the many companies that knowingly sell these kilts. They are in business because they give the customer what they want. An affordable kilt. It wasn't very long ago that members here on xmarks wanted a kilt for the price of a pair of jeans. This is now a reality that members can now and do embrace. It's business, and we all want a deal.....will we actually boycott these establishments? ............?

[Father Bill]

Well, some of us will, Robert.

[crash]

Well, some of us will, Robert.

Add me to that list Bill

[TheOfficialBren]

Well, some of us will, Robert.

And a big KYLEISM TO THAT, Father Bill!

[Kilted Cole]

I can understand companies making the pakistani made products available....but I boycott those products and the companies from that region of the globe. I instead save up my money and buy the products that are labeled "made in the USA" or "made in the UK" or Canada or vendors that are on this site. I usually call before I place my order to confirm a few things....Rocky will back me up on this because I don't think I have ever placed an order with him "Just" online without calling to be a pest and ask a few pointers on my order. Same for Matt Newsome with the order I just placed with him. To my knowledge neither of these folks use products from Pakistan. And to me anyhow that says a lot for their small privately owned companies.

[auld argonian]

Are digital cameras really that hard to come by in that corner of the world? I am always shocked / dismayed / annoyed when the product in the photo (in highland wear or any industry) is not the actual product the seller is selling. I can understand companies who sell Lochcarron products using Lochcarron's "stock" photos (b/c it's approved by the company to sell their products), but stealing images of similar (but different) products is annoying at best and deceptive at worst.

Rocky, I have to think that these schmendricks have at least got enough on the ball to realize that they want a Westerner as a model in their ads rather than someone from the East. What's their target market? Not your average Pakistani. So besides being lazy, they don't want to spend the rupees hiring a Western looking model.

Best

AA

[RockyR]

Rocky, I have to think that these schmendricks have at least got enough on the ball to realize that they want a Westerner as a model in their ads rather than someone from the East. What's their target market? Not your average Pakistani. So besides being lazy, they don't want to spend the rupees hiring a Western looking model.

Best

AA

Logic dictates that you're correct. If I was selling Kimonos, I'd want a far eastern model. If I were selling saris, I'd want an Indian model. It only makes sense to want to picture the "end user type ethnicity" in the product photos, but keep in mind: You don't HAVE to have a model in the picture! You can have a kilt / sporran / kilt pin / etc hanging up without a model.

That being said, it doesn't make it right. The problem is (and I have had this explained to me by a friend in the US who DOES sell Pakistani kilts and DOES understand the ins and outs of Sialkot Pakistani kilt market) that the companies in Pakistan don't generally see an ethical issue here. There's no 'ownership' on photographs, so taking an image, especially when it's as easy as "right click, Copy, Paste" is not an ethical issue. They have different views on it than we do in the west. The problem comes when you, as a company in the middle east, enter into a WESTERN product in a WESTERN market with MIDDLE EASTERN 'business ethics'.

All that being said, I partially retract my statement above... If the companies in Pakistan TRULY don't see an "ethical issue" with stealing other photographs, then why would their general responses be "oops, my web guy must have done it" (read as kid caught with hand in the cookie jar) or "you can't make me take it down... prove it's your picture" (read as "you can't make me"). In those instances, they show no sign of not understanding the ethical issue. They DO show that they know it's wrong and either are embarrassed that they got caught and try to shift blame to their web guy OR they fight you to prove that they stole it. Either way, they recognize that it's wrong, but it continues to happen.

Moral outrage ONLY counts if it's followed up by action, otherwise it's just lip service. If you truly are outraged at ANY company's practices (kilt related or not), it's up to you to choose to not purchase from that company to affect change. If you buy something from a company you find immoral, you're contributing to their immorality by financially supporting them. It's like an octopus... if you feed one arm of the octopus, you feed the entire octopus.


Sorry for the rant... stepping down from soap box now.

[JohntheBiker]

Here's the thing. There are many local retailers who sell kilts made in Pakistan that have poached designs from kilt makers like myself.

As bad as using unauthorized photos is, the poaching of designs has got to be worse.

Robert, I , and clearly others on this site, would prefer to shop for value rather than price and to buy from ethical vendors and manufacturers.

[Canuck]

Thanks for the support.
I have managed to get one of the photos taken down. I'm working on the "British Rebel Tan" Leather photos now...his reply to me was in a "few days" My response was No, Now! we shall see what happens.....

[Carl]

Spending money in that neck of the woods seems like a great way to end up on the watch list of some government agency. Better to save yourself a LOT of grief (all around) and make your purchases from reputable sources.