It seems like nearly every week you hear about another fashion designer complaining about getting their clothes, handbags, or shoes knocked off. The New York Times this morning has such a story in the small business section about indie fashion label Foley Corinna, whose clothes have been copied by infamous knock-off artists like Forever 21 and H&M.

While it's easy to understand their dismay—they cite an example of a $400 floral dress that was copied and sold by Forever 21 for $40—isn't that just part of selling wares out on the open market? Good ideas are always copied, for better or worse. Remember when the colorful, eye-catching iMacs appeared years ago? It was only a matter of time before their bold, bright colors—their hallmark—started turning up on a myriad of non-Mac electronic devices including other computers. The same came be said of numerous gadgets, fashions, cars, and even hairdos.

Beyond that, while the premise of their complaint is logical—other people are unfairly cashing in on their idea—I think that the knock-offs could actually help promote their label. Says The Times:

"One could wonder, though, whether the copies have made more people aware of Foley & Corinna's existence, even driving shoppers to see what the fuss is about."

It makes sense. While a certain percentage of the population will always buy fakes, an entirely different segment will cough up big bucks to make it clear that they're wearing the real thing. To a certain extent then, knock offs promote not only the brand, but actually boosts its exclusivity. Let's face it, no one really wants a fake Hermes Birkin (one of the most copied bags out there)—the original is so much more cool. If something is hip enough to be copied, that lends a certain panache to the real deal. And the thing with knocks offs—whether its a faux iPod or or a fake Chloe bag—is that they look fake. I can see why the small business owners like Foley and Corrina see someone ripping off their idea as a threat, but it's not all bad.

Let's play spot the fake:

Click here!