Egg chairs death by association  

Simon, I agree with you for...
Simon, I agree with you for sure. However, I think the people that want and can afford the originals will stay true and buy original - The people who buy the 'fakes' aren't usually designaddicts, they may like a design but don't necessarily know or care much about the design/history beyond the 'look' (lets impress our friends brigade). It's a sad fact, and not just in our industry, that people in this country will settle for 2nd best in order to save a few quid.
A close friend of mine runs a car detailing business (paint correction etc) but many people can't see the difference between a basic (and usually cr*p) valet, and a full blow paint correction program thus complaining about the price!!

I feel your pain.
But in the case of the Egg and Swan chairs, there's a couple of issues that seem murky and difficult.
First, "The Republic of Fritz Hansen" has and is doing little to stop these fakes.
Second, the Hansen pricing is so high that it makes the knocking off seem attractive.
(Which brings up the case, anyway; why do these Chinese knockoff companies knock off currently available furniture...instead of copying a classic that's NOT being currently produced???)
Putting aside the ethics, I wouldn't buy a knockoff Egg chair, because of the probable bad quality. This chair has to be made just so.
In the case of furniture from Fritz Hansen, Cassina, Whittmann, Artfort and other high quality European makers, their pricing is so ridiculous (and in some cases, availability is an issue too) that it makes these knockoffs seem attractive.
If Fritz Hansen would lower their pricing and go after these knockoff factories in China, then the problem would be solved.
Heck, both Knoll and Herman Miller are able to keep their prices to the point where people can actually afford them.

Copyright
Hi to you both
I fully agree that particularly in the UK there is an attitude that Cheaper is only option.
As for the point of Fritz Hansen not doing enough.
The current copyright law in the UK is only 50 years hence the influx of copies as the lame ass UK government is not subscribing to the EU law on copyrights.
Which I think, Correct me if you will, is 70 years.
And I know that Fritz hansen is currently suing the Crap out of someone in Denmark who liased in the import of 30.000.000 Kr of fake FH furniture. Thats £3millon
Simon

this is from Fritz Hansen
ORIGINALS
How do I see the difference between a genuine Fritz Hansen product and a counterfeit?
There are some producers who go to a lot of effort to make a product that looks very much like the real thing, fortunately, it?s usually easy to spot a knock-off when you take a closer look. The quality is inferior and the design looks haphazard.
A genuine Fritz Hansen piece is a product of years? of development work, many creative thoughts and obviously - substantial investments. The quality and design will last for many years.
Read about the initiative from Danish Furniture Association to fight the copies (in Danish)
label of origin
We are investing many resources in locating the knock-offs and in consequenct legal actions to stop the products. Wherever there's a strict legislation in this area, the products will indeed be stopped and destroyed. See the slide show.
On all our upholstered furniture you will now recognize a red Republic of Fritz Hansen label to guarantee that this is indeed an original. It's a guarantee that our customers have bought an authentic product and not an inferior copy. This ?label of origin? creates added value to the furniture and even includes the year the product was manufactured. Therefore you will always be able to tell when your product was made and the value of the item will be easier to ascertain. This measure took effect in 2006.
A genuine Fritz Hansen product is sold exclusively through our qualified partners: Click to see the network of authorized Fritz Hansen dealers.
check the fritz hansen website,

Fritz hansen dug their own...
Fritz hansen dug their own grave when they supplied McDonalds with Swan and Egg chairs. Seems to me that they weren't safe in their hands in the first place ...

Yes
I've argued many times against knock-offs for a variety of reasons: the poor quality, the theft of intellectual property, the laboring jobs it sends out of the country, and of course, the damage it does to the designers reputation.
A couple of points I'd like to make. First, I disagree with Barry on Fritz Hansen's pricing. FH serves a luxury market, plain and simple. Their prices are high because their quality and craftsmanship are impeccable (IMHO). The pricing reflects a clientelle with a certain level of money - and that clientelle will always buy original. Also, the Danish, unlike the Americans, are more interally focused: the house is a castle, invest in it. Americans, like the Japanses, invest in outward luxury goods: cars, clothing, accessories. And, the Egg ($5500) & Swan (3000) chair are priced in line with many other pieces of similar style: The Eames Lounge (4500) the LC4 (3200), the Barcelona (4200), Womb Chair (3200) etc.
As for the sullying of the name, the original vs. the knock-off, this goes to the idea of Democratic design- a fallacy that is perpetuated by those that want, with little regard to historical accuracy. Modern was intended - in SOME cases - to provide low-cost, high quality furnishings. There are those that hold on to that as justification across the board: the 'designer' wanted everyone to have this, therefore i should buy a knock-off to suit the 'designers' wishes. Anyone who has access to an inflation calculator can tell you that prices in the 50s were equally as high in many cases as they are today. Designs like the Barcelona and the Swan chair are SPECIAL pieces of furniture. They are not the everyday pieces of MCM- unlike the Series 7 chair, or the Eames fiberglass.

Yes, cont'd
Looking at this from the other side, from the person who buys the knock-offs, and we see a person who does not actually like design. As LFR states above, design is a process of layering, thinking, rethinking, attempting, failing, re-attempting, diluting, into the very purest essence. It is a combination of materials, form, function, & intent. A person buying a knock-off doesnt see this. They see the approximation of design as form recognition and status symbol. Like recreating a painting from memory - the robustness of an Egg chair - all the things that make it truly special - are flattened out. All inherent 'design' is gone.
I stopped by White Furniture in SoHo this past weekend. I had to restrain myself from laughing. The Swan & Egg chairs were sad, plain and simple. The bases were clunky and off proportion, the fabric was cheap and coarse, and the stitching...oh the stitching. Running my hands along the seams of the knock-off was like running it over corrugated cardboard. The stitching was done with a thick yarn, heavy and crude, unlike the subtle, near invisible stitching on my friends (yes, the one with the jet) authentic Swan.
So, will the knock-offs harm the reputation of the authentic pieces? Of course. People will recognize the shape, but most wont have interaction with a real one to recognize the difference in quality. At White furniture I was told both Egg & Swan were by the same designer - no disclaimer that they were knock-offs. But will the knock-offs kill the originals? Doubtful. Knock-offs will push the authentic prices higher, make them more exclusive - but there will alwasy be a strata of society able to afford that. And, as long as people are thinking only with their wallets - regardless of quality and longevity, regardless of the economy & long term benefits, as long as people are in the mindset of "I want therefore I SHALL have" there will always be rationalizing and there will always be knock-offs. And that makes me sad.

lucifersum is so right !!!...
lucifersum is so right !!!!! nothing is worse than White furniture company in NYC.
They not only make the cheapest crap they sell it!! . at least Alphaville has a sophisticated process of making there knockoffs in China,
these guys make just plain Crap and i will go on a soap box to let people know ,
Most of all it breaks before it ever makes it to your home, go fiqure
and for you nelson clock fans they charge 3 times the price as our friends from ALL WORLD sounds kinda greedy to me, Fritz Hansen has been at the for front of kock offs,
Here is my take if you are gonna buy a knock off and some of you have to, God bless you cause you have other places to go with your money during these trying times,
Spend the extra bucks, and at least buy a good repoduction of the original just cause it is not knoll does not mean it is a cheap knock off, great chairs from Italy, and Argentina are on the market, just be careful where you are buying them,

Knockoffs suck.
Knockoffs suck.

Lucifer...I agree with you in principal....
First off, I've said it before; I don't buy knockoffs as a rule....90% of my stuff are originals.
Your price comparisons are a bit off; the base prices are all within the high end of reasonable but remember, they usually show the item in a much more expensive fabric.
I have to give credit to Herman Miller 'cause their prices for the Eames Lounge chair & ottoman, and the Eames Sofa are for the LEATHER versions. Buying a Knoll sofa in leather requires about $1300 added to the price.
I know that Fritz Hansen does good stuff, as does Whittmann and Cassina and Artfort, but jeez, I think their profit levels are awfully high.
We all want quality and luxury, to be sure, but we also want a good bang for buck...which is why many of us buy second hand on eBay and at many of the MCM furniture stores.

what is MCM
You guys keep mentioning MCM furniture. What is it?

it means mid century mode...
it means mid century modern. all furniture that has been spoken in this column is considered MCM with the exception of mies barcelona and bruno chairs,carobuisa chairs, Breuer Wassley chairs, and eilen grey tables,

Herman Miller has been in...
Herman Miller has been in the vanguard of a growing movement to promote awareness and education of authentic designs.
To learn more about the roots of modern design, visit our online exhibit, Discovering Design.
To verify that you are getting a Herman Miller original be sure to:
Check the product.
You know the real thing when you see it. The time-honored design of an authentic piece is something you'd recognize anywhere. Still, you want to be absolutely certain.
Check the source.
Where do you go to find the real thing? Well, if it's a genuine Herman Miller product you want, manufactured according to designer specifications, then simply go to one of our authorized stores.
Check your conscience.
There's no question about it, you want original design, produced by the original manufacturer. Knock-offs don't pay royalties to the original designer, they aren't produced according to designer specifications. And they don't meet our standards of quality and durability. Now go, with a clear conscience, and get the real thing.

This is silly.
Like...
This is silly.
Like probably many folks on this forum, I own furniture that has been knocked-off, and badly, but it does not disenchant me to it. If it does you, let me venture to say that you are, perhaps, considering too much the matter of your furniture, and venture even further to say that you are too shaky in your own belief in your sensibilities. There are loads of knock off Fender guitars out there, too, but nobody loves their '68 Fender Jaguar less for it.
If someone were to come by and remark that they saw some piece of mine in Target, I would very probably not even bother to correct them; I wouldn't risk lower lumbar strain to flip the chair upside down to point out the label whilst disabusing them. It's not the point, it's small, and they wouldn't care anyway. So why should you? It's disheartening, you bet, but I encourage you to tune that noise out and carry right along with what brings you satisfaction.