Rihanna has just won her legal battle with Topshop after the British retailer unlawfully used her image on a T-shirt. Does she really need this?
In 2013, retailer Topshop commercialized a t-shirt with a picture of Rihanna. Very quickly, the brand had to pull the item off the shelves after a complaint of the singer. The star just won this legal battle in appeal, although the original photographer did license the use of the image to Topshop.
The reason for her complaint? Badgalriri’s fans who bought that T-shirt thought the singer had approved the usage of the photo, and it seems that the Barbadian star didn’t want to lose her “fashion reputation”. But how common is this kind of t-shirt nowadays? The British brand tried to explain that they always feature icons on their shirts… without success. And yet, a few months ago, Rihanna was actually seen wearing a Topshop sweater featuring a picture of Elizabeth Taylor’s face… Topshop vs. River Island ?
Maybe the real problem is that Topshop is the direct competitor of River Island, a brand for which Rihanna is the spokesperson?
We’ll let you think about it, but to us the polemic seems a bit blown out of proportion for a simple t-shirt…
Pauline Arnal
