A tale of two pants

I am still have a mental block for blog post titles. So forgive me here as I try and assemble my thoughts. Fashion retailer Cos and H&M are owned by the same parent company and although they target different shoppers and price points I'm a fan of both stores and like to dip in and out to check out their products.

Recently I bought a pair of wide trousers from H&M , a really nice heavy weight jersey fabric, great drape and no cling. Looks wonderful worn with a crisp white cotton shirt. I was inspired to go voluminous after seeing the couture footage from the Valentino Paris collections. Which will be a big trend later this year.
 Photo from  Vogue

Earlier this week I checked out Cos and lo and behold a very similar pair of  Wide trousers were for sale. Its the same fabric and length the only difference is the belt detail where this pair has belt loops and a £44.01 price difference. If I had bought the Cos pair first, I would be very annoyed seeing the same pair retailing for much less in H&M.

It feels like this story could be featured on Diet Panda , although they focus on Designers ripping off /influenced/inspired by/ other Designers. For a  retailer with a major High Street presence, its seems silly to cannibalize your own markets. Maybe the Buyer was having an off day and wouldn't think anyone would notice or Head Office doesn't have anyone in charge to look over the overall collections to avoid duplication?

Have you ever come across a high street retailer knocking off another?
twosp x

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