
AUTHENTIC DESIGN ALLIANCE®
HELP STOP DESIGN THEFT!
Authentic Design Alliance® is a Social Enterprise leading the fight against furniture design theft in Australia. We advocate for improved Intellectual Property (IP) protection for furnishings and create awareness about why we must buy once, choose well and not support the fast furniture industry.
We educate about the importance of investing in original products to support the brands and individuals that create, make, sell, specify and promote authentic design.
Our vision is for the word ‘replica’ to be eradicated as it unfairly misleads customers about which products are legitimately original and misrepresents knockoffs to be somehow connected to the licensed manufacturer or distributor.
We believe the replica furniture sector must be criminalized as it profits unfairly by selling copies of successful original products. Buying, specifying, or selling replicas, knockoffs, and copies directly supports design theft.
“A successful product employs a network.
A successful collection creates a sub-economy”
As an independent association, we drive awareness about the cultural, societal, and environmental damage caused by ‘copy culture’ and ‘disposable decorating.’
We strive to shift the dial towards consumers valuing authentic products and long-term purchases over cheap short-lifespan copies to support a stronger future for our industry.
ADA® members directly enable our ongoing work with Government agencies for IP reform; and help fund our national education program.
Discover more about ADA® membership here (or here if on mobile / device)
Lets get real.
6 Facts About Design Theft.

BECOME A MEMBER
ADA Members enable our program
As a member-funded association, we are supported by designers, makers, manufacturers, distributors, importers, and retailers of authentic products.
Our members also include interior designers, architects, interior stylists, photographers, digital influencers, building industry brands, and landscape design professionals.
- MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS // desktop view
- HEAD HERE // if on a phone or tablet
LATEST NEWS

Improved search tool for industrial designers IP Australia has announced Australia joined DESIGNview, an initiative of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). [...]

IP Australia Announce Improvements to the Design System
Changes to improve the registered designs system are now law! These changes will provide more flexibility during the early stages of seeking design protection. Key changes [...]

GREAT NEWS :: 12-MONTH GRACE PERIOD INTRODUCED
The introduction of a 12-month ‘grace period’ is a small win that packs a big punch for the furnishing sector! Now (or very soon) a 12-month buffer will apply [...]

WHAT MEMBERSHIP IS RIGHT FOR ME?
AUTHENTIC DESIGN ALLIANCE ® members enable our ongoing education, advocacy and event program and support the best future for the Australian furnishing sector.

MDW I IP AUSTRALIA: Key Learnings – protecting your IP
The Australian design industry contributes $67.5 billion annually to GDP, equal to the construction industry. So with design theft now rife in both retail and the interior [...]

VIVID DESIGN COMPETITION 2021 I Entries now open (closing May 2)
Calling early-career furniture, lighting, and object designers! Entries are now open for vivid design competition 2021 // Entries close May 2nd. Open to professional designers [...]

MDW21 :: IP AUSTRALIA EVENTS RECOMMENDED FOR ADA NETWORK
IP Australia joins Melbourne Design Week with three virtual events. Free to attend, participants will have the opportunity to direct questions and contribute to this next [...]

PROGRAM UPDATE :: JOIN OUR CAMPAIGN STRATEGY SESSION // Melbourne (March)
Our intended February roundtable sessions have been rescheduled in Melbourne (March) and Sydney (April). We invite you to join our strategy sessions and help inform the ADA® [...]

CONTRIBUTE TO ADA® CAMPAIGN STRATEGY + HELP SHAPE OUR 2021
We are excited to share that our first events in 2021 will enable our network to help shape ADA® campaigns, and have a say! In February, we will host roundtable sessions in [...]
CASE STUDIES

CASE STUDY // Clement Meadmore – the problems with design theft in the 1950’s still prevail today!
Best known for massive outdoor steel sculptures that can be seen across Australia and around the world, the late Australian-American artist Clement Meadmore (1929-2005) was [...]

CASE STUDY I The problem with copyright – don’t assume you’re covered!
Some of Australia’s best-known rock photographers claimed copyright infringement by an online auction of media giant Fairfax’s Sydney Morning Herald image archive. ABC news [...]

CASE STUDY // Don’t Ask Designer-Makers to Copy Original Designs!!
What happens when credible studios or makers unwittingly accept a commission to produce what they believe to be original work only to later discover the project is a [...]

CASE STUDY // THE BUILDING INDUSTRY PROBLEM
The heart of the problem when building industry professionals swap the original furniture and lighting on projects for blatant knock-offs has been succinctly headlined in a [...]

CASE STUDY // Miss Glass Home x Aldi Knock-offs
Retailer ALDI Australia advertised a near identical product to one created by the Melbourne-based brand Miss Glass Home. The story then went viral as social media feeds lit up with many views on the growing problem of big business knocking-off original work by independent design brands and local creators. ROBBED ON HOME TURF These David vs […]

WHY DO AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTIONS BUY REPLICA FURNITURE?
National Gallery Australia: NGA x Replica furniture As the problem with design theft escalates it’s clear that many national gallery, museum and public institution decision-makers simply don’t know what’s real and what’s fake. Either that, or they simply don’t care. But, sadly, replica furniture resides in many galleries and public institutions in Australia. Authenticity is […]